


Bloodborne: Bloody Mystery

by TheOddshipper



Category: Bloodborne (Video Game)
Genre: All Bloodborne NPCS, F/M, Family, Friendship, How Do I Tag, Romance
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-12-01
Updated: 2018-12-04
Packaged: 2019-09-04 22:14:26
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 8
Words: 46,204
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16798084
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheOddshipper/pseuds/TheOddshipper
Summary: The hunter wakes to the nightmare, explores the cursed city slaughters the snarling beasts. The hunter discovers disgusting truths of the city. Insanity and death. The hunter must be insightful and skilled to make it through the nightmare that is this city. The lamps will light the hunter's way.Forbidden Woods, Hypogean Gaol, Byrgenwreth, Forsaken Cainhurst castle, Upper Cathedral Ward, Yahar'gul Unseen Village, Nightmare Frontier, Nightmare of Mensis, The Hunter's Nightmare and The Chalices.Come, join the hunter during the worst night of the hunt.(Novelized Bloodborne.)





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Alright so I've been talking to my friend who goes by more so these days DarkMousySan and Midnalikeswaffles. See this friend has a Bloodborne fanfic but posting to more than one site stresses her out. Me too...but I stopped posting to one other place cuz my browser doesn't like it for some reason...hers is the same way but anyway!
> 
> I told DarkSan I was willing to help her get this fanfic out there, a couple mine are well liked and...I just think getting Bloodborne fanfics all over is a great idea :D
> 
> I have DarkSan's premission to post it here so long as I do this, "This fanfic is wirtten by DarkMousySan who cane be found here: https://www.deviantart.com/darkmousysan/gallery/53801456/Bloodborne Please go see the gallery folder there on DA to see pictures and get some other info."
> 
> ...Really guys be a good idea to go see her gallery, she has links to all the lore she had ever found on the game there and has pictures that go with the fanfic, eh well one picture but still! I don't know how to put pics on here. Also DarkSan is slightly writing this along side Maria. A name some of you should know as she edited Twisted, the first part. Maria edited this first chapter for DarkSan and she has her own hunter who joins DarkSan's sometimes.
> 
> DarkSan also said she's working on trying to get some more lore together for some places and has told me she doesn't talk about every area to the fullest, that takes a lot of time to do but she does plan to go back at some point and do that.
> 
> The summary was made using this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8POKKXcGB_0&list=PLPdPkbqc-7AmBu9xVTufPivi26ea6FND5 DarkSan liked idea of me using her trailer video for her walkthrough of the game for that so you bet I did it :D
> 
> She's a good friend and I just wanna help her out, besides I think her fanfic is pretty good.
> 
> Well that is it I think, just point out mistakes so they can be fixed and enjoy the fanfic, wish you the best everyone! :D

(Afternoon)

Causin replaced a couple books on the tall shelves in her office. She had just finished going through all the books and was now certain she had found all the books on herbs she could. The rest were other subjects she had little to no interest in or simply wouldn’t be useful to her, she would sell them.

She shook the light brown shelf a little pleased to see it hardly moved. She was glad she bought the book shelves, her herb books and other medical books all fit perfectly on both tall wide shelves. She never thought herb and medical books would be given colored covers and backs, there was also designs on some of them. Oh well, the authors must have had their reasons.

She watered a little plant, a few feet from the book shelves, next to a short soft silk covered couch placed in front of an uncovered window. She adjusted the cushions and lifted two books, they were some that she would be selling. They focused on knitting, something she didn’t know how to so, she could sew and make clay pots but she couldn’t knit.

“I have got to get rid of that carpet.” She muttered in her odd accent, her voice soothing and gentle. The carpet didn’t look bad per say, it just wasn’t in her taste. This was why she didn’t like her mom to pick her clothing anymore, she had her own tastes that Causin wasn’t fond of.

Causin began dusting the bookshelves, then swept away the dust from the clean shining, hardwood floor onto a dust pan that she shook into a bag she would dump later. “There,” She smiled softly as she looked around the office in her home. “It’s all clean and organized in here now.” Aside from a cushion on the floor and a book but she’d take care of that in a minute. Causin’s eyes landed on a small mirror resting on her thick oak desk.

Her long silver hair was pulled back into a ponytail near the middle back of her head, her skin was pale nearly looking like porcelain. Her eyes were an odd color, light green but silvery, her mom told her it was something from her side of the family but didn’t explain more than that.

Causin was dressed in a light green dress that buttoned down to her waist, the dress hung just before her ankles, there were long white cuffs on her selves with a golden button, in the center of said button was a diamond. She wore a darker green short over coat with a white collar. On her feet she wore a simple pair of flat heeled black shoes, they were simple, yes, but very comfortable and she could run in them if she had to.

She looked different from all the women in this city, her mom did have light hair but it was blond which looked normal, Causin’s hair was silver, something unheard of. Her mom had promised to tell her why she looked the way she did one day after she came home from being bullied, Causin was still waiting for her mom to tell her.

Causin sighed and shook her head, lifting a light wooden box from her desk and began to check the contents, when she heard running feet. Soon enough a woman with long black curly hair, light brown eyes and normal white skin came around the corner. Her silk white shirt was bloody on the right upper arm and she had her left arm curled around her dark blue corset silently telling Causin she was hurt around her ribs or stomach too.

“Causin!” The woman gasped out of breath. The silver haired woman didn’t give her a chance to explain, she merely led the dark haired woman to a chair in front of her desk while bringing another over so she could sit and started to push up her sleeve. “I fell down the stairs again...there was a nail poking out of the boards and it got me.” The woman explained as she watched Causin examine the wound.

Since Causin was taking too long in looking it over the woman began to get worried and joked, “I guess I wasted my money on this necklace huh? Not very lucky is it?” She laughed rubbing the back of her head.

“I won’t argue that you did waste money on it.” Causin agreed and looked into her box that she never put down. “After all, I don’t believe an item can be lucky. Not only that, that necklace never looked worth ten silver coins.” The necklace was pretty but the thing wasn’t worth that much.

The black haired woman scowled but didn’t reply, you didn’t argue with Causin about money she was a noble. She had long ago learned how to spend money and make certain not to spend too much so there would always be some left, she liked the thought of working however and that was why she was studying herbs.

Causin groaned. “Why did you come here?” She pulled a white bandage out of the box and began to wrap up the wound. “I don’t have any herbs here for wounds or any to dull pain, not to mention the fact I’m still learning!” She snapped as she started to tie the bandage which was turning red.

“Why don’t you have herbs here?” The woman asked confused. “Because,” Causin hissed once she finished. “This is my HOME office, not my work office.” She explained shortly, now annoyed. “Look Sarah, I’m still learning.” She spread her hands in a helpless manner and shrugged. “I’m certain half the books in those shelves are going to be moved to my work office once I start studying herbs more, for now however,” She crossed her arms over her chest giving her friend a faint glare. “They are here.”

Sarah sighed and rubbed her nose. “So I should have gone to the clinic then?” Causin nodded. “I can’t tell how to treat you. All I could do right now is clean that but I don’t have soap and warm water here.” Causin had her friend stand and pointed to the door. “I still have work to finish here, go to the clinic and get looked at.”

“Okay…” Sarah walked off her head low, Causin didn’t feel bad. She had only started looking into becoming an herbalist recently. She couldn’t tell if Sarah’s wound was infected or if it was deep, she wouldn’t know which herbs to use to prevent infection and which to ease pain. Frankly she still confused weeds and herbs back in her dad’s garden.

Causin shook her head bringing her chair back to its place behind her desk and sat down to start making lists of what she needed to learn first, she had no idea it would be a long list until an hour later when she finished. At least she got to enjoy the fresh wood scent of her desk and chair of the pages from the books, she wasn’t fond of the scent of ink but there was little she could do about that.

~~*~~

Causin would never deny she was a bad student, every tutor she ever had was forced to find different ways to teach her because she learned differently than others. She was, however, glad none of them were angry, they liked the new challenge. Currently her problem was taking notes, she wasn’t certain what was important and what wasn’t. Her dad had no problem telling her thank goodness, they were out in backyard, just off to the left of the yard table and chairs where her dad’s herb garden was planted.

There were so many different colored plants and wonderful smells of the herbs, grass, trees and soil in the air. Causin looked at her father and grinned, then began to list some herbs she knew from memory that was planted here. “Basil, calendula, cayenne, chamomile, chickweed, dandelion and echinacea.” Her dad smiled at her, pleased. “Very good Causin, those are some basic ones.” He turned to a few pots and began to explain the herbs to her, he may only use them in cooking but he at least knew what was an herb and what was a weed.

Causin’s dad was named Jonathan Hall and she looked nothing like him. His skin was lightly tanned, his eyes a mild brown and his hair, which was combed back away from his face and cut short, was dark brown. He was rather tall too. He wore a thick black coat that mostly covered his white silk tied and buttoned shirt and silk dress pants with dark leather boots.

If there was anyway Causin could see this man was her dad, it was not only his tender care and kindness along with love toward her, it was the bone structure. Her jaw was slightly sharp like his but it was tamed by her mom’s blood.

“Causin, dear.” The silver haired young woman turned slightly to see her mom standing in the doorway to the house. Causin looked a bit more like her mom than her dad. Her mom was named Jess Hall. Her mom had long, platinum blonde hair that nearly looked silver which was tied elegantly up to her head with a few braids hanging down, her skin was pale but not as much as Causin's and her eyes were light blue. She was shorter than both Causin and her husband, she barely came up to his chest. She wore a silk dress, colored white at her upper body and the rest was red.

“Yes mom?” Causin asked as she stood and walked over to her mom who smiled sadly at her. “I believe it is time I told you about how you look dear.” Causin didn’t know but her dad looked up, his expression concerned, Jess had never told him no matter how much he asked. She had only ever said it had to do with her side of the family which often confused him, he had seen her parents and they didn’t look like Causin did which left great grandparents whom Jess didn’t talk about.

Causin followed her mom inside when she turned and began to walk off, Causin nodded politely to a few servants that were cleaning one of the many sitting rooms. She was a little confused when they came to her mom and dad’s room but was more so when her mom stepped past the bed to a corner and cut her hand and let the blood drop into an odd hole they had ever managed to fill it. To Causin’s shock the floor began to sink down making stairs without a sound. “Mom?” She asked confused and uncertain.

“It’s alright dear, this conversation merely needs to be very private and yes, I shall answer your questions as best I can.” Jess stated as she led her daughter down the stairs. There was only a small room down the stairs, a single comfy couch and a small chest beside it. Her mom took a seat on the side of the couch that was near the chest and patted the spot next to her. Causin crossed the short distance and sat down, folding her hands in her lap.

Jess leaned over and lifted the box resting it on her lap. “Causin I have never told your dad about this because my mother and her mother told her never to until something happened. I never knew what this something was until just a few days ago.” She shut her eyes as though in pain and leaned her head back. When she opened her eyes once more a minute later they were filled with sadness. “Perhaps though I should let you ask questions first.” She whispered softly.

Causin jumped to the chance knowing once her mom started she wouldn’t stop save for a few things. “Why did you bleed to make this open? And how is this here? How did that even work?” She rasped, too shocked and confused for much else and it wasn’t about to get better.

“My blood, my mother’s blood and great grandmother’s blood and now your own blood, Causin, is different.” She began with a sigh. “I don’t understand it fully myself but all I know is that it is different, as for how this is here I don’t know. Perhaps great grandmother built it, as for how the blood worked, I can’t say as I don’t know.” Causin nodded in understanding, waiting for her mom to go on.

Jess took a deep breath and stared at the chest in her hands. “You and I are of noble blood, an old noble family that not many know of now. Great grandmother left the castle and the city itself to find a better life for herself...I don’t know what things were like there but for her to leave, it must have been bad.” She mused softly, stroking the sides of the chest gently. “Great grandmother...lived for a very long time and I think she could have lived longer if she hadn’t killed herself but I suppose some people don’t like just going on and on.” Jess looked at her daughter and would have laugh at her confused and shocked expression if things weren’t so grim and grave.

“I was told to one day give this to you by my mother, or rather to give to any child I had when the time came. I was allowed to look inside but never take the item that is saved for you my dear.” Jess held the chest out to her daughter who blinked. “Me? But why?” Causin questioned as she accepted the chest.

Jess shook her head. “I can’t explain it my dear, something in me...has informed me that you must have what is inside...and then leave as soon as you can.” Causin nearly dropped the box at her mom’s final words. “Leave?” She gasped in shock. “Why?”

“I don’t know...it’s what I was told and what my mother was told. Inside you will find those who look like you Causin along with a folded paper, I have guessed might be a map that will lead you where to go.” Jess took one of Causin’s hands in both of her own. “You need not leave right away, you might need to know your herbs and if the journey is long you will need supplies.” Jess didn’t want to accept that her daughter had to leave but...her blood was telling her that Causin would leave and that was why she was told Causin she would. Her dear daughter would be drawn away, by what, she didn’t know but it was going to happen.

Causin swallowed hard and nodded taking her hand back to open the chest. Inside was cushioned in red velvet, resting on the bottom of the chest was a locket, it was shaped into a circle with crest on it. Two wolves facing away from each other surrounded by crimson, the rest however was silver. Causin lifted the locket out of the chest while Jess replaced the chest on stone floor.

Causin gasped when she opened the locket, ignoring the scrap of folded paper for a moment. A portrait was on the right side of the locket, women with silver hair and pale skin like hers were in it. One woman sat on a throne, her face was sadly faded but the other woman’s appearance hadn’t been affected by time but Causin wished she was. This woman looked much like her, so much so she thought perhaps that woman may be her mom, the hair color was the same, the eyes were the same and so was the skin.

A man stood behind the two his arms folded behind his back sharing looks with them, perhaps a father to them or brother? There also no doubt in her mind that the people in this portrait were nobility, the way they held themselves and how they dressed told it clearly.

She now paid attention to the folded paper and unfolded it finding her mom’s guess was correct, it was a map. It started in her city then branched off a great distance to some place called Yharnam- Causin jerked and gasped, the map falling to her lap along with the locket as she held her hands against her chest. Her blood was humming within her then she felt a pull, she needed to follow it and soon. Once she had her breath back she nodded to her mom. “I see what you mean now, I have to go.”

Jess lowered her head sadly, she had the same reaction to seeing the chest but not the map. She checked it everyday and not long ago she had felt her blood hum and knew it was time. “Let’s go up stairs dear, you have a lot to learn from your dad and much supplies to prepare.” Causin nodded and followed her mom back up stairs, folding the map up and looping the locket around her neck, she couldn’t part from it and she wouldn’t not ever.

**(Midday)**

Causin had left home a month ago after spending many months learning about herbs and as much as she could about wounds and how to treat them. Then she started to prepare to leave home and go to Yharnam, food and water was a given and she took an extra coach to make ground faster. An hour or so ago she had told the man controlling the coach to stop, as it wasn’t safe for horses up a head, she had also ordered him home and he couldn’t disobey an order. As much as he hated it he left her to walk the rest of the way.

Now Causin stood a mile away from a huge city, the walls around it were huge and quite thick. Something however wasn’t right, there was no one around, no merchants or travelers and no one near the distant gate into the city. The lack of people wasn’t what concerned her, it was the silence. The bugs, and no animals making a single sound. That didn’t happen unless something was very wrong.

Causin spotted a small hut a few feet away, it was rather run down and a bit overgrown, in fact the wood looked like it was rotting away. She walked over to it and knocked gently fearing the door might fall if she knocked too hard. No one came to the door. She looked through a broken window and sighed. This hut hadn’t been lived in for years, nothing was inside and there was water damage all over the floor.

She gripped the handle of the door twisted then pushed it open, the door groaned and creaked but didn’t fall apart or break much to her surprise. She closed the door behind her and went through the bag she had with her, finding some extra clothing and used it to mop up the water on the floor, it was going to need a good wash after this.

Causin was pleased to see some boxes in good shape that had tools in them, she could repair the hut so it was livable. She got to work on that right away, more than happy to the find several boxes of nails and other supplies she’d need.

**(Dusk)**

It had taken Causin the rest of the day to fix the roof, walls and floor. She nailed some cloth over the windows since she didn’t know how to fit glass let alone make it. The rest of the time she went over her notes on herbs and started to wander around the small area for water, looking for mud and clay so she could make pots to store the herbs she had found around the hut.

She spent the next month making herbal remedies and tea. She was also glad she learned some trapping skills as she had run out of food supplies. Causin wasn’t certain why she didn’t try to enter the city a mile away...it just wasn’t time yet. Causin would merely stay in her hut and keep busy until things changed.

**(Evening)**

Causin woke up one morning knowing now it was time to go into Yharnam, she packed all her supplies up and left it in the hut. She shrugged into some travel clothing that would be easier to move around in than any skirt or dress that hugged her form slightly. Before she left the hut, however, she removed her locket and slipped it into her shoe, for some reason she was worried she’d lose it if she didn’t do that.

Once everything was packed away safely, Causin began her walk to the city, halfway to the gate she felt tired, she slowed her pace but it didn’t help any. She didn’t however stop walking until the tiredness increased and she felt weak, Causin was only just reaching the gate when her body gave out, she lost consciousness.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> DarkSan had an easy time using her time skips in this, she follows how the game time works :D
> 
> If you wonder why Gehrman has a hard time looking at Causin its because she looks just like Lady Maria. DarkSan fashioned Causin after her in game.

The first thing Causin noticed when she started to wake, was that her head hurt and she felt woozy. A moment later, she realized she was unable to move save for her head. She struggled to open her eyes when she heard a man’s voice, sounding as though he was answering a question she didn’t recall asking. “Oh, yes...Paleblood…” His tone was mildly surprised but held no shock and he sounded faintly elderly.

Slowly she saw shadows and a light, as her vision focused further she saw the outline of a wheelchair with a small lantern hanging from it and a man wearing a top hat. She couldn't quite make sense of the room yet. 

His hands moved down to the wheels of the chair as he he began speaking. “Well, you've come to the right place. Yharnam is the home of blood ministration. You need only unravel its mystery.” He stated waving a hand as though it was simple.

Her vision cleared some, she was able to see what looked to be an IV stand with bottles on it, she could see some faint arch ways behind the man and something off to his right but was unable to make it out. 

She returned her attention to him when he spoke and started to roll over to her. “But, where's an outsider like yourself to begin? Easy, with a bit of Yharnam blood of your own…” As he neared her the light from his lantern showed him more clearly. His clothing looked dusty, tattered and a little old. She noticed mostly however, how outdated the clothing was. While things were similar back home, it didn’t look quite like that.

Her musings were cut short however when he leaned over her laid back form on the hard table she was on. “But first, you'll need a contract.” His words rang some warning in her mind but she was too focused on how he looked. His hair was messing and nearly looked like straw, his beard and mustache were in the same state. From what little skin she could see he had wrinkles and was dirty but what made her breath catch was his eyes. They were gone and the tron skin hid the sockets or he had badly placed bandages over his eyes.

Causin became worried again however when she felt something prick her arm, she wasn’t able to move away though and couldn’t tilt her head forward enough to see what he was doing. He began to ask questions about herself that she answered truthfully unable to do anything else, once he asked her name he finished with his questions and said, “Good. All signed and sealed. Now, let's begin the transfusion.” 

Transfusion? Of blood? What?! She hadn’t agreed to anything like that! Causin tried to move back failed and merely lowered her head back seeing more IV stands, cabinets and what may have been a short table as her head dropped. 

“Oh, don’t you worry.” The man said having noticed her struggle. He leaned over her blocking the strange ceiling from sight for a moment. “Whatever happens...You may think it all a mere bad dream…” Her vision blurred and pain shot through her arm for a second then only a strange feeling in her body and head as the man moved back laughing. Causin’s eyes shut and only peaceful darkness greeted her.

Causin heard a dripping sound, it woke her up. She blinked a little seeing a IV at the corner of her eye and something that looked like a star above her. The ceiling was covered in thin wood in many designs. She couldn't say if it was for look or to support. 

Causin slowly turned her head to the left to see where the dripping water was coming from and her breath caught. There was a huge puddle of blood on the floor- her eyes widened as her vision cleared fully but she felt she had to be seeing things since there was a huge bloody wolf coming out of the blood on the wooden floor.

The blood splashed and splattered the floor, as the wolf moved out of it, blood dripping from it as it got closer to Causin. Its teeth were bigger than she had ever seen on a wolf but the thing alone was huge, however, she was more concerned about its claws since it was reaching for her face. Causin was close to full on panic when a fire suddenly burst to life on the wolf’s claw and quickly spread to the rest of its body. It roared and struggled but soon fell dead onto the floor.

The fire died down quickly confusing her but Causin was just glad the wolf was gone. She slowly turned her head back to look at the wall across her only to pause seeing a small pale hand grasp the side of the table she was on. 

A small humanoid creature with pale skin was pulling itself up, it made an odd groaning or hissing sound. It looked starved and malformed. It pulled itself up more now grabbed her trouser covered leg, Causin was quickly freaking out when she spotted another on her right but this one looked worse than the other.

She was now in full blown panic when she turned her head again and spotted several more, they were climbing on top of her body and starting to crowd her. She dearly hoped they meant her no harm since she couldn’t move, then slowly her vision began to fade out again and she felt tired. 

Her head fell back, the things crowded near her head and one placed it’s hand over her face. Everything went black but she heard a calm, gentle soothing voice that sounded nearly the same as her own accent. “Ahh, you've found yourself a hunter…”

***

Causin sat up with a soft gasp, she moved her legs over the side of the table and hopped down. She brushed her hood off her head and started to look around now that she could move and her vision was no longer blurring. It looked like a clinic, the table was short but thick and was...made of metal? Back home they used wood and even then it had cotton and a sheet over it for sanitation. She made a face seeing the bloody cloth she had been laying back on. 

The new hunter hoped she didn't get sick from that, frankly though with all the rust she could see on the tools and the IV, she felt she might have been connected to, the chances of illness form that alone were quite high.

Looking around more the new hunter found the place was full of dust and dirt. The floorboards had seen far better days and some boards seemed to have been ripped off and were scattered around. There was paper all over the floor, as well as stacks of books and the random book here and there. There was medicines and chemicals on tables and cabinets that appeared to be well placed. At least that was done correctly. Causin also spotted broken glass on the floor and made a mental note to step carefully.

There was also several shelves but aside from books, papers, medicines and chemicals there was just dust and a bunch of random clutter. Causin noticed a lamp was lit near a closed door which had some glass broken in the window, had the man lit it or was someone else here? She took a few steps over only to see a scrap of paper on a chair near a cabinet and shelf. She moved to take the paper but paused seeing the leather straps on the chair. One strap would go across the body and there were two on the arm rests.

“What the...?” Causin whispered as she gazed as the chair. Were people being experimented on here? Or was there a sickness that made people lose their good sense? Those were the only reasons she could find for the straps. 

Causin ended up repeating her words again when she read the paper. ‘“Seek Paleblood to transcend the hunt.”’ She read aloud. “What the bloody heck does that mean?” Not only that, this looked to be in her hand writing but she didn’t know what this Paleblood stuff was...or perhaps her subconscious knew but her conscious mind didn’t. It was a long shot but nothing else made sense.

The silver haired woman left the paper on the chair then noticed another door, it was fairly dark over there but she could see it. She didn’t make one move over before the smell in this place finally hit her. She held a hand over her mouth and nose in shock and choked. Rotting wood, blood, fur, fire and sickness. She could swear there was ash mixed in as well. “What is with this place?” Causin hissed as she walked to the door but found it locked.

Causin shrugged and walked back to door that had a lit lamp near it, however, in her walking she noticed it wasn’t just the floorboards in bad shape. Everything was in bad condition. The walls had cracks and were about ready to fall apart, the tables, cabinets and shelves all had some kind of scratches and were ready to fall down. The IVs and tools were the worst of it; caked in dried blood, rust and many looked like they were going to break at any moment. “Just what happened here?” Causin muttered now getting worried.

The new hunter turned to the doors pushing them open, surprised that she found it a little hard since the doors looked thin, maybe they were made of oak. She spotted a chandelier and a window above her, from the looks it was either afternoon or nearing dusk. Walking down the long staircase she noticed this building wasn’t just wood, there was brick and stone; the wall paper, which was coming off, hid most of it but she liked a lot of the decorated wood on the walls it looked nice. The new hunter also spotted more lamps but they weren’t lit, they were high up she imagined it would be tricky.

Causin came to an open doorway...it had no door. The floorboards were far worse down the stairs then up. There was more paper on the floor and broken glass, there also appeared to be dirt of some sort or maybe pieces from a wall that got crushed on the floor. There was two benches in the small room she guessed what may have been the waiting room once, boxes of tools and bottles resting on them. Bloody rags and ripped up paper were on the benches as well.

There were lamps but only two were lit and there was a chandelier giving her just enough light to see the designs on the benches and walls. Whoever handled the building in this clinic was very good with wood. Causin however was still concerned at the destruction and disorder she was seeing. Something was very, very wrong.

The new hunter walked slowly through the next doorway, idly noticing this one had doors but not caring enough to check them she spotted more of the same; destruction, disorder and plenty a mess. Causin did twitch in shock when she found a chain on the floor, that was new. 

As was the bloody tools resting in a container on a metal table. The bloody rags and other medical supplies she had seen upstairs, but a chain on the floor? That sent alarms off in her her head much like the chair did which she found another in this room just next to the door.

Causin tried to look around more but two things stopped her. One, it was dark and things were hard to make out and two, she could hear the sounds of...something not too far away. Causin took a few steps back into the room with the benches, she felt fear that something was in that next room that could harm her. She didn’t have a weapon and her hand to hand wasn’t good. 

Causin did a quick roll, once more glad she had switched to her travel clothing that had trousers instead of a skirt. She did a few more rolls and quick dodging and decided to hope for the best. The new hunter crept forward into the large room; as she rounded a few tables she spotted a thin puddle of blood, a few corpses and a large wolf eating one of the corpses. Her breath caught and she made certain not to move least it hear her.

Her thought was wolf but...was it really a wolf? Causin never heard of them getting so large and its posture was not one a wolf had. It’s fur also looked off. An odd thought entered her mind, scourge beast. She’d call it that she supposed but had no idea where it came from. The new hunter stepped a bit closer than froze when it stopped eating the corpse and lifted it’s head, it didn’t however turn around but now it knew she was here. 

Causin only saw one option and that was to run, if things got bad she could roll behind one of the many tables and toss an IV stand at the thing and keep running. Up ahead she saw an open doorway, a staircase lead up to closed doors. The new hunter took several deep breaths then bolted.

Luckily the the scourge beast drew back then lunged missing her completely as she ran, the new hunter got up the stairs and pushed hard at the doors but made a mental note to come back and take care of the wolf as she had seen something as she ran up the stairs.

Causin got the doors open and rushed through what looked to be courtyard with headstones, dead plants and trees and broken short fences. She ignored this all vowing to come back later and opened a large iron gate as quickly as she could, then rolled through sending herself down a set of stone stairs and smacking into a nearly broken iron fence.

“Ow…” She groaned rubbing the ach on her head. “Oh crap…” She muttered seeing the part she hit was nearly gone, if her hitting it had been just a little too hard she would have fallen to her death. “Man...panic is okay but not too much panic.” Causin stood up and brushed her clothes off, getting rid of the dirt. She saw four vials of red liquid on the ground near where she had rolled, Causin knelt down and picked one up. By the color...and smell she guessed these were blood.

The new hunter didn’t know why but she took them, they vanished from her hands, however. But when she thought of one it appeared in her hand. Causin was confused now, very confused. She decided to ignore the things for now and looked around the small space she landed in.

There was a dead man leaning against the fence his head bowed his body covered in blood wearing the same kind of outdated clothing she saw before. She clasped a hand to her mouth in shock and horror before forcing her gaze elsewhere. 

There were dead drying leaves twisted into the fence, dead plants and tied bags and sacks of who knew what, Causin found more paper and books on the ground along with a top hat and box of bottles on one of the benches she found but what had her backing up was the chained up coffins.

Causin was now scared, everything was in ruins and disorder...the smells in the air were awful too. Fire, blood, death, fur and sickness. This city had something wrong with it. She walked back up the steps finding more bags and coffins as well as an abandoned coach. She turned around and choked, there was a dead horse on the ground in front of another coach. Either it had been picked at by animals or it had been there for a while to look and smell so bad.

The new hunter looked up the small hill and spotted yet another coach but she also saw a man with a torch walking around. Maybe he could tell her what was going on, was there a killing around? But that wouldn’t explain all the destruction and disorder. She’d just have to go ask.

Causin walked up the short hill, moving around the coach the man, huntsman another odd thought, spotted her and started rushing over. Causin gasped and rolled quickly to his side to get behind him as he swung a large axe at her yelling. “Away, away!” The new hunter quickly realized the city wasn’t the only thing that had problems it was the people too, he looked well on his way to becoming a animal of some sort with all that hair and fur on him.

The new hunter did her best to ignore another dead body as she ranked on a leaver and had to roll again when the man swung his torch at her repeating away, away again. Quickly she ran and rolled around him and went half down the hill before doubling back and rolling behind him again, when he growled and tried to slice her with the axe. 

Causin grabbed the ladder and rushed up as best she could without losing her hold on it, she jerked hearing a loud shrieking from somewhere and doubled her efforts to get up the ladder. Idly she noted again the good craftsmanship of the buildings but she’d think more on it later when she wasn’t in danger.

At the top of the ladder looked to be a house with some kind of smoking lantern hanging next to it, in front of it was an odd lightly glowing lamp on the ground. Without thinking Causin tapped the lamp making it glow brighter, the next thing she knew she was kneeling beside the lamp holding a hand out to it and vanishing just as the man got up the ladder.

~~*~~

Causin came to slowly feeling cold hard stone under her body. She carefully picked herself up and looked around. It was very lovely here, healthy grass, white flowers, trees and some other plants were growing freely. There was a line of headstones leading up the a small building, some of those little creatures rested on one reaching out.

There appeared to be a person...no doll sitting on a slight incline of stone near a lantern. To Causin’s right was a stone path leading to an odd dust spot on the ground, on the right was more headstones and a large bowl, one of the creatures sat in it clapping its hands.

The new hunter walked to the bowl and found words written on it. “Messenger Bath...hm?” She looked at the creature in the bowl as it looked at her in what might have been awe. “Is...that what you are?” She asked it. The little thing nodded, it then ducked under the smoky water and came back up with all sorts of items. This...Messenger owned a shop, blood echoes were the accepted currency. She had some...she didn’t know how but she did. 

The new hunter waved goodbye to the little thing and headed up to the building, finding more Messengers had weapons for her. Causin took an axe and a simple pistol, she also got a notebook from them then walked into the building.

There were many books, either stacked on the floor or on shelves and short tables, bottles rested on a shelf above a box, a large cabinet was filled with all sorts of bottles and jugs and pots. There were pots under a table and a tea set on another. A large warm comforting fireplace, and a work table with all sorts of weapons around it. Tools, bottles and so many containers that would help with holding supplies.

In the back was a stone table covered in lit warm candles a few cups, a bowl and some books. More books, curtains and a statue behind it. Along with a scrap of paper. “‘To escape this dreadful Hunter’s Dream, halt the source of the spreading scourge of beasts, lest the night carry on forever.”’ Causin cocked her head, this place was called Hunter’s Dream? She let the scrap of paper drift back to its place and made her way back to fireplace where she found some pictures...but the glass was broken so badly she couldn’t make anything out.

The new hunter jumped when heard someone clear their throat. She turned and saw a man sitting in a wheelchair leaning on a walking stick...he had a peg leg and had even further outdated clothing than any she had seen so far. He was an old man, with slightly short white hair and pale nearly wax looking skin.

Causin approached him and gave an apologetic look for snooping. The smiled at her and said, “Ah-hah, you must be the new hunter.” She’d take his word for that. “Welcome to the Hunter's Dream. This will be your home, for now. I am…” He made a soft sound causing her to wonder if he forgot for a moment. “Gehrman, friend to you hunters. You're sure to be in a fine haze about now, but don't think to hard about all this. Just go out and kill a few beasts. It's for your own good. You know, it's just what hunters do! You'll get used to it…”

Causin tried to ask him a question but he didn’t let her, he started explaining what the building was for. “This was once a safe haven for hunters. A workshop where hunters used blood to enhance their weapons and flesh. We don't have as many tools as we once did, but...You're welcome to use whatever you find.” His next words were a reluctant whisper. “...Even the doll, should it please you…” The new hunter merely left the building, every time she tried to ask the man something he interrupted telling her not to worry and simply kill beasts. Not only that he wouldn’t look her in the eye, she wasn’t certain what to make of him.

Her thoughts went to what he had told her. Were beasts the reason the city was in bad shape? If so she guessed she would help bring them down but...were people changing into beasts? The few she had seen didn’t look good, like they were just about to start snarling and growling like a beast. No maybe...maybe they were just sick and insane, nevertheless she knew she’d have to defend herself.

Causin checked out the work table finding she could repair and fortify weapons but she had nothing but blood echoes on her so she couldn’t do anything it seemed. She walked out one of the doors and found another bath with Messengers in it but they couldn’t, for lack of a better word, talk with her. 

Maybe she needed something first. A few steps away was a headstone...odd. The rest had candles on them but not this one.

Causin walked down the the main path and headed right to see what the dust spots were and was happy to find notes from the Messengers that were teaching her the basics of fighting. The new hunter spent a few minutes swinging her axe around, in its small and large state, she doubted she’d use the gun but she kept it anyway.

Now...now how did she get back? That question brought others that she didn’t want to think about right now. The Messengers at one of the headstones waved at her. Causin knelt down and touched the stone and found words enter her mind. 1st Floor Sickroom and Central Yharnam. She focused on the first one and felt herself moving in some strange way and vanishing much like she had when escaping from that man.

~~*~~

Causin found herself sitting beside a lamp back in the clinic, in what might have once been a waiting room. She stood up and looked at the lamp, the Messengers were hugging the lamp and making soft sounds. 

The new hunter looked up the stairs and saw the door was closed, maybe the man who gave her the transfusion was there or perhaps someone else...someone she hoped wasn’t sick or insane, she really needed some answers.

For the moment though, Causin pushed aside some of the boxes on one of the benches and sat down leaning on her extended axe. She needed to rest for a minute and calm her mind, then she’d look for answers and start moving again.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Edit: DarkSan said she did the description in this chapter and informed me to not expect the rest be fixed up like this any time soon. This took her two days to do and the thing she used to listen to her voice sometimes messes up and gets something utterly wrong. It also doesn't part up for paragraphs, and put in commas or periods. DarkSan went through this chapter several times making certain it looked how it was meant to and is very sorry if she missed anything but she plans to keep looking through it.
> 
> But guys take pity her on this editing thing yeah? It take a lot of time.
> 
> I have to say I'm impressed how DarkSan took care of lvling, me? I would have just just had the hunter get stronger as they go not use the doll. But hey my friend made it work :D

Causin jerked awake when she nearly fell forward onto the ruined hardwood floor, her new axe was the only reason she didn’t end up falling. “Ah, I didn’t mean to fall asleep.” She muttered rubbing her forehead. She stood from the bench and began to make her way up the stairs, looking through some cracks in the window, she could indeed see someone in the room she woke up in.

“Hello?” Causin called knocking gently on the door. “Are you friendly?”

There was a soft shuffle then she could see someone coming to the door, a woman in white. “Are you...out on the hunt?” Causin nodded, pleased the woman was speaking and not trying to break the door down to kill her. “Then I'm very sorry, but...I cannot open this door. I am Iosefka. The patients here in my clinic must not be exposed to infection. I know that you hunt for us, for our town, but I'm sorry. Please. This is all that I can do.” The woman Iosefka held a long thin vial up and pushed it half way through one of the holes in the window on the door. The new hunter accepted the vial. “Now, go. And good hunting.”

“Wait!” Causin cried clutching the vial. “What do I do with this? What is it?” The woman on the other side of the door paused. “Are you...a new hunter?” Iosefka asked gently. “I am.” Causin replied hoping to get some answers.

“I see...yes, you wouldn’t know would you? That my dear, is a blood vial.” Iosefka explained. “Hunters use blood vials to heal when injured. The injuries are healed in a matter of seconds. Do you have any? My vial is special, it will heal you more than any other vial.”

Causin thought of one of her other vials and one appeared in her hand sending Iosefka’s vial to wherever the rest went. “I have four, how do I use them? I don’t really wish to drink it.” 

Iosefka laughed softly. “You don’t drink the blood, hunter. When you aren’t using the blood vial it has a cork on it, when you need it one will come to your hand and it will have needle on it instead. You must stab it into your leg and then you will be healed.” The woman laughed again hearing Causin sputter and cough. “Defeats the healing purpose doesn’t it? I’ll put holes in my legs!”

“No hunter, you won’t. As soon as you draw the needle back out the wound will close over. While yes, using the vial will hurt but over time your body and mind won’t register the pain of the needle.” Iosefka explained calmly. “Now if there isn’t anything else, I really must get back to work.”

“Alright, thank you for explaining that. Take care, you and everyone in there.” Causin waved goodbye as she went back down the stairs. Now she was going to kill that beast.

She would have asked Iosefka about the beast thing but the woman sounded and looked a bit like a doctor. She might not know. The new hunter was hoping to come across other hunters so she could ask them but for now she had a wolf, er scourge beast to kill.

The hunter adjusted her hold on her extended axe and gripped it tightly so it wouldn’t fall from her hands, however the silver haired woman knew once she started connecting hits to beasts and those crazy people if she had to...her grip would likely have to change. She took a deep breath and left the room with benches and made her way into the larger room that the wolf was in eating another corpse.

Causin grabbed her axe ever tighter than ran forward and swung the axe down hard only for it to harmlessly clink off a metal table. Her face drained of what little color she had when the wolf growled and took a swipe at her. She jumped back two times and backed a bit and managed to land a hard blow over the top of the wolf’s head. To her shock it still lived.

“Ah!-” The wolf bit her chest knocking her back a few paces, it tried to make a go for her head only for the new hunter to swiftly step off to side and swing the axe down hard against it’s back. Against all odds the thing was still alive! Quickly she swung the long axe again and finally the scourge fell back against a cupboard dead.

“What’s this?” Causin wondered seeing a light coming off the wolf she got closer to see and found 3 blood vials tied to the wolf’s waist. Why did this thing have vials? Causin shook off the thought as she took the vials and headed to the small room just before the stairs out of the clinic.

Causin swallowed hard when she found a dead man against a wooden wall, he had two vials on him which Causin took while speaking a soft apology to the man. She hoped he hadn’t suffered before he died. She walked up the dark staircase until she found herself back outside in the little courtyard.

Now that she wasn’t running for her life she could take a look around. The plant life in the courtyard was either dead or dying. Dirt was tossed up all over the stone walkways and some stone was torn up and destroyed but honestly that wasn’t a shocker at this point, everything in this town had high chances of being destroyed or in disorder. The little fences that were around she gathered were to keep animals off trees but the fences were broken so much that Causin wasn’t certain of that.

However the headstones and mourning statues caught her eyes. When she said mourning she meant that, the statues either had their hands over their faces, or leaning up to the sky crying out and some...were holding up their hands to the sky their faces covered. Some of the statues that had their hands to the sky held lit or unlit candles. “Who took the time to light these?” The new hunter wondered aloud. She found a street lamp a some feet away, a statue with its head lowered and clothing over its head was holding the lamp up- wait...were those Messengers?!

Causin got a closer look and found that yes, there were little Messenger statutes with the human statue holding up the lamp. Then...the Hunter’s Dream was real? People knew about it so...Causin shook her head hard and breathed out hard holding a hand against her forehead. She didn’t have a lot to go on and until she met someone who could start giving her answers she needed to not think too hard or she’d get a headache.

The new hunter found herself looking at the clinic from outside and a few other buildings trying to ignore the sound of something big walking around and making odd noises. The craftsmanship of the buildings in Yharnam was really quite lovely, she even found a design on one building, a marking saved for a noble family or one that had money she guessed. It looked sort of like a lion but Causin wasn’t sure she guessed right, it looked a little off but perhaps that could be due to weather conditions and the current destruction and disorder in the city.

If Causin wasn’t impressed by the design and patterns on the buildings she was impressed by the fact buildings were built with stone, brick and wood. Some hard thick woods too if she was feeling it correctly but she wasn’t an expert on wood, nor was she on stone. Causin also found a dead man with quicksilver bullets on his body which she took for her gun. Somehow when leaving the Hunter’s Dream she had bullets for her gun, perhaps they had been in the storage box and the Messengers gave them to her as she left. They seemed like the helpful sort.

Causin also couldn’t help but notice more chained up coffins and chains on the ground. Her theory on the beasts crept back into her mind and she shoved it away. No sickness could make a person turn into...something else! No sickness did that, it had to be something else! The people who were sane just had to be scared...they had to be that’s why they chained up the coffins.

The new hunter took another quick looked around and spotted little particles. She couldn’t make out what they were by they were floating through the air and landing harmlessly on the ground. Was it ash? No it was too light, perhaps sparks from fire? But there would need to be a lot of fires and they had to be big for this happen. She ignored the things and looked to the distant buildings, they were tall and as well made as everything else from what she could tell at this distance.

The silver haired woman shook her head causing her hair to fly. The reason for her head shaking was her now trying to adjust to the fact she had killed that wolf- scourge beast, she had been so distracted with looking around it hadn’t hit her yet. She had killed the scourge beast and it’s blood was on her. Causin was trying to prepare herself for killing more of these...beast things and possibly people were sick and insane. This wasn’t going to be easy but she wanted to get through Yharnam she had to do it.

Instead of walking through the gate she opened earlier she moved to one across from it and tried to push only to find it wouldn’t open, perhaps it was locked or only opened from one side. Shrugging the new hunter headed to the other gate and looked around the corner seeing the light from the torch that man who chased her down had. He was making a small patrol from what she could tell.

Walking through gate she recalled the tombstone she used to get back. The sickroom led her to the clinic the other one had said Central Yharnam...was this place past the gate Central Yharnam? She crept forward shortening her axe as she didn’t think she needed the safety of length with just a man, nor the strength the longer axe had. Causin ran past both coaches and swung her axe at the man hard and kept swinging until her dropped. His final words were, “Cursed beasts…” She blinked and considered his words. Was he...trying to hunt the beasts too? But then why was he attacking her? Hunters took care of the beasts as well why was she an enemy to him?

She turned slightly to see a closed gate behind her and managed to spot a lever behind the gate, she gathered if she got over there and pulled it the gate would open. Causin found more statues only these were of animals, more chains on the ground, chained coffins, tied bags, sacks, suitcases and...a case of bottles? Blood was splattered on the bottles; either that they were filled with blood, or she guessed this hunt happened a lot and people had tried to prepare by making certain they had supplies. Causin was hoping there was just water in those bottles.

The new hunter stepped passed the ladder seeing a dead man slumped off to the side of it, she wondered if he had tried to get the ladder and failed- wait...wait! If that man back there had just been looking out for beasts why kill a man who wasn’t one? Causin didn’t understand. She picked up two blood vials from him and said a soft apology, if she had come into the city sooner...would this man still be alive? No, she couldn’t think like that.

Her next step was cut off in pain as something poked her foot hard. She winced and hopped a bit before leaning on a wall to see what she stepped on. Nothing was there- wait something moved in her boot. Causin took the shoe off and shook it out, a soft clink caught her attention, looking down she saw a silver locket with a crest on it surrounded in crimson. Suddenly everything came back in a rush, she was here because of this locket, this locket was the key to answers or at least some.

Causin picked up the locket and looped it over her head to wear it, however she did hide it under her clothing just for some safety. Moving forward along the small space she found more bags and coffins along with a wheelchair and a single manned coach. There was a man lying in front of it and another near some bags and sacks. She thought they were dead until she got closer and they started getting up, they looked much like the other man had and were holding weapons. The new hunter didn’t wait for them to strike, she drew back her axe pouring everything she had into it and slammed it down on top of one man killing him instantly.

She rolled out of the way of a strike from the other man and quickly cut him down. When she rolled she broke a couple boxes and found molotov cocktails, six of them however, she wasn’t expecting to see bones on the ground. 

She gasped in shock and fell back crawling away. That was new and very unexpected, why was there bones in a box? Causin quickly got up and made her way up the ladder trying to forget what she saw come out of the box.

Once again now that Causin wasn’t in danger she could take note of her surroundings. However there wasn’t anything new. Same disorder and destruction, she did find another top hat, more suitcases, paper and books, bags and sacks and chained coffins. So really, nothing new.

She did give the the odd smoking lantern a look, she didn’t think she could begin to guess why it was smoking so she kept walking. The gate near by of course didn’t open, so she went off to the right. Causin found her first useless item once she was down a stone slope. Eight pebbles were found on a dead body, she didn’t know why the man had these, what use was a pebble?

The new hunter walked across the short bridge seeing more cluttered destruction and disorder, some was broken however by a man with a meat cleaver. He was NOT hitting her with that. She brought him down with a strong strike, smashing him into the stone ground. Causin turned and headed down some stairs finding a man sitting down and a man standing up near a fence lining. She struck down the sitting man and lifted a brow at the other who was holding a torch up and lifting a very weak looking wooden shield.

She busted his shield with one blow then cut him down in the next. To her right was another set of stairs and a lot of men were down it, if she didn’t want to get hit she had to be careful here. A couple men had a pitch fork she knew she didn’t want that thing hitting her, nor the meat cleavers, torches or sickles.

She managed to dispatch them without too much trouble but their words were confusing her. “Beast! Foul beast!” “You plague ridden rat!” “You are not wanted here!” “It’s all your fault!” As they died, “This town’s finished.” “Accursed beasts.” Or “Cursed beasts.” “Gods please no…” She didn’t know why they thought she was a beast sometimes or why they didn’t want her help, did they have to attack? Why couldn’t this be talked over?

She ran down the hill they came from seeing more disorder and destruction along with one new thing...a beast tied to a cross and burning. Thankfully it was dead. As the new hunter pulled the lever to open one of the gates she saw before she wondered if people had been trying to leave when this whole thing started, the coaches all over, the suitcases, the bags and sacks...maybe they had packed up and tried to leave only to fail and had to run and leave everything behind.

The gate was open now though, she had a short cut now, a small one but it was here. Causin turned to her right and froze seeing a large man with a huge axe walking around. Smartly she decided to pretend she didn’t see him and went back up the hill.

The new hunter came near a house with a smoking lantern resting near it, she knocked at the door and was shocked when she heard a sane voice. “Lousy offcomer. Who'd open their door on a night of the hunt! Away with you. Now!” She was starting to get a feeling as to why she was getting attacked but wasn’t certain yet, she ran up some near stairs. 

She found more of the usual along with a burning beast...and a very bad looking well. She hoped when this was over the city would recover. Causin picked up more molotovs but found one vanished, a picture of the storage box from the dream entered her mind. So it went there? Then she could only hold so many at once. It made sense.

The new hunter found another lantern and knocked at the door getting confirmation about why she was getting attacked. “Are you that outsider? Well, sorry, but I don't want anything to do with ya. Trot along, willya.” Aha...these people were xenophobic...they didn’t like outsiders in their city. But was it really necessary to try and kill her? Was that fact that she was a hunter not helping matters? Causin badly needed answers.

The silver haired woman made her way back down the stairs and rounded a coach. She killed a gunman before he could stand, gathering some bullets from him and walked up a short staircase...people in this city sure liked stairs. 

What was this spot used for? Oh, houses it looked like, the street for coaches to go through and houses up above. A smart idea, though, wouldn’t it have been easier to just make a whole area saved for housing? Her home was like that. Causin supposed the people here in Yharnam did things differently.

She walked half up a short staircase when she heard breathing, there was a man up here somewhere, off to the right if she was hearing correctly. The new hunter rolled past the swing of his sickle and quickly brought him down with two swings of her axe. 

Causin picked up a strange crimson stone from a dead body, it looked to be made of blood but also stone. Words rang through her mind, blood stone shard. Was that what this was? She didn’t know what it was used for, maybe the Messengers in the dream knew, she’d have to ask them.

Making her way back down the stairs and continuing along the line of houses she ended up having to roll back as a man jumped out from behind stone railing to stairs leading to a house to slash her. She made quick work of him but now she knew these people would hide and ambush her. Not a great thought.

“Oh Shee.” Causin groaned as she looked ahead down below. There was a huge mob of the huntsmen below, most were around a tied up hung burning wolf. They held torches, axes, farming tools and sickles. She could also see a gunman off to the distance. Great, there were so many of them...just how was she going to handle this?

Causin took a moment to just gaze at the cluster of people around the bonfire, given the number of them the new hunter was well aware she needed to be careful. However as she followed the line of the fence, she could see a man with a torch overlooking the mob of men surrounding the burning scourge beast. He would most certainly be a problem, perhaps sound an alarm and get her caught by the rest of the men.

Slowly the new hunter began to make her way along the fence line carefully avoiding stepping on scattered dirty books, papers, broken glass, bags and suitcases. She came to a stop upon finding some headstones around a street lamp along with one of the lamenting statues. “Why on earth are these here?” She wondered aloud to herself softly. Out of the rest of the oddities she had seen thus far those headstones were the strangest, finding ruins, discord, chaos, bags and suitcases that could be explained away by people trying to leave. But the headstones and the strange coffins lining the streets, that truly gave her pause. Harshly she shook her head attempting to put it out of her mind, she needed to get past this. She continued forward cautiously narrowly avoiding getting her sleeve caught on a water pump, she also sidestepped a chain on the ground. That would certainly have given her away.

Once more she paused, there was a short staircase leading down to the mob of men, truly Causin did not think it wise to just rush in and try to fight them all at once. More so now that she could spot over the top of a coach was another gunman, that made two of them. Taking a quick glance the other side of the street the gunman on top of the coach, near the coach was a staircase to the side. The new hunter spotted movement she focused intently on the spot and realized it was a dog, the Hunter's Dream gave her information, Rabid Dog. Well lovely, she rather hoped it didn't bite her. She flicked her silver green eyes back toward the man with the torch.

Given the distance the new hunter wasn't certain how quick she could reach the man with the torch before he could sound an alarm. She took some cautious steps forward and to her surprise when he moved it was away from her toward a closed gate but unfortunately two men from the mob noticed her from down the stairs and rushed up after her forcing her to retreat so she could take them both on at once. At the corner of her eye she saw the mob from down below split off, two went off toward a closed gate, some went to one of the flights of stairs on other side of the street but the majority began to move to where she had been before.

However she began to head after the man with the torch, he could after all still cause problems. Carefully she crept up behind him, drew back her short axe and slammed it down on top of him. He dropped to quicksilver bullets, Causin backtracked to catch up with the piece of the mob that had broke off from the main group.

She headed back down the stairs and got around the coach she continued farther back as she didn’t see them immediately. The new hunter spotted them at a gate she'd opened earlier, quickly she rushed down and gave two strong wide swings with her extended axe catching all three of them. It took another one of those strong swings however to bring two down and one final overhead swing to get the man holding the pitchfork. He seemed to have more endurance than the rest.

She started her way back, the two patrols from the mob were currently going around the bonfire, she ran in quickly to draw all their attention then ran back as the gunman on top of the coach noticed her and fired off a shot, luckily as she turned around the patrols had indeed followed her. Causin kept her axe extended a she attacked knowing that bit of distance and extra power was going to be a great assistant. She was proven correct when one of them managed to clip her but didn't manage it a second time with her next follow-up swing, she caught up with some of the other patrolling mob and cut them down quickly, little she could do about the gunman from her position so she ran back.

She hid behind one of the ruined coaches when she stopped hearing the gunfire the silver haired hunter moved back forward and noticed that she had brought down the majority of the mob, there was only the patrol and the gunmen along with that rabid dog left. She had gotten a few more than she meant to, it wasn't a bad thing though. It made things easier that they had to split off the way they did.

Quickly before the gunman could shoot her Causin ran forward and got up the stairs, she heard a shot fire behind her but knew that he had missed. A street lamp, a statue and some headstones were in a perfect position to allow her to fight one one man while the gunman shot her. His bullets only hit the statue and street lamp. A strong blow from her axe brought the gunman down.

The dog now had noticed her, it ran around to get up the stairs. Causin shot it and knocked it down, the dog appeared to be quite weak to bullets. The new hunter rushed forward and gave a harsh upward swing of her axe killing the rabid dog. The new hunter had no intention of finding out if it could make her sick or worse.

Causin made her way down the second flight of stairs and killed the last gunman before he could shoot her, she picked up his bullets. After all there was no need to let them waste. Causin took a look around the street seeing all the crates, the boxes, suitcases, the bags and even crates of bottles. Single coaches and larger coaches, neither of them looked in any good kind of condition. They must have been attacked before people managed to hide and get inside or before they became sick. However the parts that was really bugging her, was the majority of the bonfire appeared to be human bones, she rather hoped that scourge beast had been dead before they tied it up and burnt it. She wasn't counting on it.

However with so many coaches there simply weren't any horses, she guessed they must have run off or been eaten but she only found one corpse of a horse and either it had been there for a while or it had been picked clean to an extent. But then she didn't know much about rot, although near her exactly where that horse was the gate shook as something smacked into it from the other side. The new hunter wasn’t keen on finding out if something could break it down so quickly ran back past the coaches to get back upstairs, as she did however she heard a very harsh loud growl. It wasn't like that of any beast however, it sounded more like a human but for all she knew it could just be a beast trying to fool someone.

As she looked forward she had to pause, there were two gates risen up along the pathway and she had to wonder why they were there. Did this lead to a market, commercial district? But why close it down? Perhaps to prevent theft at night. Causin tried to ignore the shoes and hats scattered along the ground, along with all the rest of the disorder and chaos. Items that have been lost as people tried to run, said, items such as crates, boxes, suitcases, bags, she decided to just ignore it was all over the place and frankly there wasn’t a reason for her to continue taking note of it. If she saw something new then, yes, it would be noteworthy but for now she put it out of her mind.

Although the headstones and those crates of human bones were always going to bother her.

Causin saw an incense lantern signaling that there was someone alive within that building, she ignored it as she knew that they wouldn't talk to her. Walking down the short staircase she found a baby carriage. Torn up, there was no blood and certainly no baby. Leaving her to think perhaps the parents had escaped with the child before things got terrible, she had to hope anyway.

Plant life was dead and dying as everything else was, a great number of trees were around but they were so dry and dead not a single leaf hung on the branches, they looked rather terrible. The new hunter figured that if she swung her axe that it would break the tree, they looked just that bad. The large fountain however was something to be seen, she couldn't really make out the expressions on the faces but perhaps they were lamenting or begging, she couldn't be sure. But the craftsmanship of the fountain was very well done. Although the water looked like it had not been cleaned in sometime, it didn't hold a smell which was a blessing.

She spotted a couple of Carrion Crows, as the dream told her, off to her left and moved over to take care of them for they could cause her problems. The Hunter's Dream telling her what her enemies were called has been quite helpful there were more coaches around along with a wheelchair. It was a rather grim thought imagining someone who is incapable of walking properly or at all being trapped in that kind of situation, the beasts around them, the sick around them and coming at them and they can't even flee.

Causin tried to put that out of her mind with a shake of her head. Around the fountain Causin spotted on very large man banging on the other side of the gate, he appeared to be holding a brick. His clothes were dirty, tattered and quite dark either they were naturally colored that way or they were just that dirty. The Hunter's Dream gave her information, Brick Troll. The new hunter adjusted her hold on the extended axe and took a few steps forward, the man noticed her fairly quickly he must have heard her steps.

As he turned he appeared to be covered in bandages, there was hair or fur escaping them and appeared to have claws. He took a swing at her with the brick which she dodged very carefully. Causin had no intention of getting hit with that, she made a wide sweeping swing with her axe and then followed up with an overhead swing then quickly rolled back with what little stamina she had left. The troll had only staggered slightly but left her some time to catch her breath and pull back for a large swing, as it got closer she let go and caught the brick troll with both of her powerful swings sending it flying back into the gate it had been pounding on. Luckily that seemed to be all it took to finish it.

The two bodies that had been near it didn't appear to have been killed by the brick troll, there was no blunt force trauma after all. She picked up anything that they had as after all the the items were useful. She had picked up things, it was a good idea no matter how terrible she felt about it. Getting cold blood dues, molotov cocktails, quicksilver bullets, blood vials and bloodstone shards is really no reason not to loot them she just had to try very hard not to feel bad about it.

Causin made her way around the fountain again, there is a set of stairs leading to three different directions. The right, the left and up. She went up the first flight and took a right finding another wheelchair making her stomach turn she really hated the thought of someone being stuck in a wheelchair and unable to do anything as a scourge beast came after them or worse. Assuming there was worse than them and those were the hardest beast she had come across so far.

The new hunter came to the dead-end she realized this was other side of the gate the man with the torch had been standing at it. There was only a dead body there as was an item she could take. On the left side was a locked gate between a house and another building, she could see a ladder and a lever behind it. She had a good guess there was a way to get over there, perhaps the lever opened the gate? She would figure it out.

Moving upwards with the flight of stairs she could hear footsteps, carefully Causin took a few steps upward. There were two dogs that could be a threat alone by themself as they were so quick however she waited too long watching, a man with a torch appeared, a gunman and one more man holding a cleaver right along with a third dog.

Unfortunately one of the dogs spotted her and alerted the other men to her presence. Carefully she drew the dog out first it nearly got her but she dodged in time for a good strong swing with her short axe, bringing it down. She brought down the man with the cleaver first, as he was more an easy target, the man with the axe and torch came after her next. Causin managed to dodge the first strike and drew her short the axe back and slammed it down on top of him, an instant kill.

The new hunter preferred that to making them suffer even if they likely wouldn't care for the same to her. This left only the two dogs and the gunman who unfortunately saw her. Causin had been making her way back up the stairs when he fired a shot. Luckily he missed and the dogs didn't notice her, however she wanted them to, at least one. She hit the iron fence to get the dog's attention which she succeeded in and dodged back before it could bite her was. It point blank range but she shot at it, knocking down the dog and then finished it with a swing of her axe.

Causin moved up the staircase just a touch to spot the dog and the gunman, the dog was further away and appeared to be behind a well. The gunman was circling that way too, she moved up ever-so-slightly and ran forward straight for the gunman. The new hunter brought him down with a single slice of her axe and then dodged to the side of the dog to avoid its bite having to do so again when it tried once more. Causin managed to bring it down with a couple swings of her axe.

Looking back to the gunman she picked up some bullets and found some blood vials on a corpse near a bench. Out of curiosity she peered down the well but found unsurprisingly that it was dry or perhaps that was mud. There was also a great deal of overgrowth around it, there was also a crate of bottles next to the bucket, perhaps water was in those. With only one of the direction to go now up Causin headed up another flight of stairs, she had to having nowhere else to go after all and gained quite the view some buildings in the city of Yharnam and heard an incredibly loud howl of a beast.

There were a great many statues and overgrowth along this large bridge, behind some of the lamenting statues she found a dead body with a bloodstone shard, if she wasn't such an explorer there's no way she would have found that. Toward the end of the bridge she could see two scourge beasts walking back and forth between some statues and a coach. Further ahead in the distance she could see a coach, more statues and a brick troll. However to her left was a stairway downward, she followed it not wanting to face the scourge beasts.

A small spot but it appeared to overlook where that mob had been, she broke some crates to pick up items and found some more breakable crates but it let down to what smelled to be a sewer. Causin could hear growls down there, gathering there must be beasts but she would rather save that for later. Moving back upward to the overgrown bridge she stared at the scourge beasts honestly not sure what to do with these things.

In the beginning when she first woke up in Iosefka's clinic that scourge beast had already been injured but now there was two and they were not wounded. So instead of fighting them out right she waited for an opening then ran between them, luckily this pulled off and there was a doorway to her left. A man with a sickle rushed out to get her but he missed as she ran inside another man with a sickle just passed some chained up barrels nearly got her as she got inside. Quickly she cut him down and then cut down his friend who was hiding behind other barrels just a few feet away.

The scourge beasts were trapped in the doorway, Causin took advantage of their large bodies and started hitting them with overhead swings of her extended axe while they were trapped in the there. It took some time but eventually they fell, they both had an incredible number of blood vials on them so it was definitely worth it to bring them down not even to mention the blood echoes.

The building was rather dark, she could make out some medical supplies on a bench, bloody cloth and even more medical supplies on cabinets and shelves. Causin figured perhaps this was a storage. Making her way down the stairs she had another man with the sword, she dispatched him as quickly as possible. More medical supplies was around, or perhaps it was alcohol but then that didn't explain all the medical tools. Perhaps it was a smaller clinic at one point unlike Iosefka’s which appeared to be quite large.

The new hunter spotted a man in a wheelchair surrounded by suitcases, bags and crates she could see him moving slightly, breathing and the soft click of gun. Even an old man in a wheelchair could not be trusted she moved forward quietly and brought down her short axe upon him, instant death.

One of the smaller cabinets she found a note, it read, “‘When the hunt began, the Healing Church left us, blocking the Great Bridge to the Cathedral Ward as Old Yharnam burned to the ground that moonlit night.’ That certainly doesn't sound good.” Causin and muttered sounded like the Healing Church seemed important, perhaps even capable of protecting the citizens but it seemed once they hadn't done so. Or perhaps it was happening now. The new hunter just couldn't be certain, she didn't have enough answers.

Causin opened the door to head outside and was greeted with a staircase and a man with a torch on top of it holding an axe. She walked out a few more steps and he ran down to come after her, a strong swing and a light one brought him down fairly quickly. She headed up a flight of stairs and found she came across a very helpful shortcut, the gates she came upon lead to the lamp that she had first used to reach the dream.

~~*~~

The Hunter’s Dream was more than just a place to store items, fix weapons and make them stronger. Causin had made a bad move a bit ago and thought she was dead, only she found herself waking up sitting beside the Central Yharnam lamp. The Hunter’s Dream somehow kept her from dying, one of the Messengers had held up a note that said that. They hadn’t steered her wrong so far, she had no reason not to believe them.

~~*~~

The new hunter stood up as she appeared next to the lamp once more in Central Yharnam, taking a chance Causin walked over to the window and tapped one of the bars on it. “Hello?” The new hunter called softly. “Oh, you must be a hunter.” The voice was male but friendly. Causin nodded and replied. “I am.”

She guessed he was looking at her through the window but she couldn’t see him. “And...not one from around here, either.” That was true so she nodded again. “I'm Gilbert. A fellow outsider. You must have had a fine time of it. Yharnam has...a special way of treating guests.” That was one way tp out it. “Well, I don't think I could stand if I wanted to…” Ah, he was sick. “But I'm willing to help, if there's anything that can be done.” Gilbert started to cough a little. “This town is cursed. Whatever your reasons might be, you should plan a swift exit. Whatever can be gained from this place, it will do more harm than good…”

Causin had a family to find and this town scream mystery, she couldn’t just walk away. Not only that she didn’t know how to leave, she passed out just outside the city then woke up in it. The new hunter wasn’t certain he would know anything but she’d try to ask a question. “Do you know what Paleblood is?” She asked him hearing his cough a few more times. 

Gilbert considered the questioned then answered, “Paleblood, you say? Hmm...Never heard of it. But if it's blood your interested in, you should try to the Healing Church. The church controls all knowledge on blood ministration, and all varieties of blood.” Healing Church? Causin had found a note that said the Healing Church closed off from the people of Yharnam, was that happening now or was it a while ago? She wasn’t certain.

Gilbert wasn’t done just yet. “Across the valley to the East of Yharnam lies the town of the Healing Church known as the Cathedral Ward. And deep within the Cathedral Ward is the old Grand Cathedral...the birthplace of the Healing Church's special blood, or so they say.” He coughed a few times, sounding a little pained. “Yharnamites don't share much with outsiders. Normally, they wouldn't let you near the place, but...The hunt is on tonight. This might be your chance…” Gilbert began to cough once more, Causin bid him farewell then continued on her way while thanking him for the information.

Before she carried on Causin went over the items she had picked up off the ground and from corpses. Cold blood dews that gave her more echos, molotov cocktails, pebbles, blood vials, quicksilver bullets and blood stone shards, which were to improve her weapons. She did feel bad about looting the dead but...she needed these things. Causin wasn’t certain how any of the known divine looked at looting of the dead but if she ever figured out what to believe in she might just beg forgiveness for the looting.

With the information she gained from Gilbert the new hunter had two ways to go now, there was sewer system she hadn’t gone down and now the way Gilbert gave her. Causin crossed her arms over her chest thinking, going the way Gilbert talked about would perhaps see her leaving this area, something of which she didn’t want to do just yet. The new hunter lengthened her axe and headed back through the gates she just opened up to go through the storage house or small clinic. It would be faster to take that rout than going all the way back around.

“How do they come back so fast?” The new hunter questioned softly as she stood at the top of the stairs. The man wielding the torch and axe was standing at the other staircase down below once more, it honestly hadn't been more than five minutes and yet it appeared her enemies have returned. Perhaps there's more of them around then she thought.

Causin made her way quickly down the stairs, three blows from her axe brought him down. She picked up two quicksilver bullets from him which went into her storage in the dream, she switched her pistol for a torch she had picked up to get through the dark building. A strong swing from her axe brought down the man with the sword, she got a blood vial from him. While it wasn't necessary to kill the man with the gun she did need the bullets, he did drop four after all.

Once the two had perished she went upstairs and was rather forced to kill the man with a sickle as he came out from behind the barrels at her. Causin had intended to just leave him be, luckily the other man with the sword on the other side of the room did not try to come after her. The staircase leading out of the building another man with a sickle stood, she rushed forward and brought him down with the heavy overhead strike.

The new hunter brought her pistol back out now, the torch was no longer needed and picked up a blood vial from the man's corpse. A problem now was the two scourge beasts once more, she wasn't certain how far they would follow her if she just ran toward the sewer. Causin ran forward to get their attention, she struck one and then quickly ran back down the stairs into the building. It was, after all, a little foolish try to fight them at her current state. She simply wasn't strong enough nor had the skill.

It took some time once more to bring them down as they were quite durable, her only good term. Frankly her axe just was not that strong, neither was she. The silver haired hunter made her way back up the stairs again carefully stepping over the scourge beasts and making her way back across the bridge to the sewer system. Causin made the turn as it came and went down the two flights of short stairs, she broke the boxes, crates and the barrels blocking her way down and took a ladder into the system. Or rather the ladder she had hoped would be there. It turned out to be just a drop, the new hunter jumped down and made a quick roll to try to lessen the sting of the fall.

That was when she noticed yes, there had a ladder that of course she hadn't seen until now. Causin went down another drop but failed to roll as she just didn't have enough room in the angle she dropped from. She spotted a very tall man, the dream quickly gave her information, Large Huntsman. He appeared to be more beastly than the others but still dressed normally. To Causin’s shock when he tried to come after her he only fell down off of the path he was on into the sewer blew.

The silver haired hunter could see some rather giant rats that she wasn't close enough to for the dream to give her information but she could see the rats and him being a problem. She hopped out onto the path he had been standing on and rolled to lessen the sting. On the other side of the path across one of the two bridges another large huntsman fell down below as he tripped. Her enemies appeared to be having a hard time. She crossed the bridge, the one she saw fall tried to get back up with a ladder only to slip and fall back down.

One large huntsman, that hadn’t fell came straight for her, she tried to draw back her extended axe to do a powerful strike but she was hit with a saw for a tree, what it looked like. Causin backed away only to quickly run out of space and was forced to do a strong sideswipe and then an overhead which unfortunately was not enough to bring him down. Causin did a wide-sweeping swing twice and that finally did it. They had endurance to take blows it seemed.

The new hunter moved along the pathway, near the last bridge was a final large huntsman but he wielded a pole instead of a saw and frankly wasn't quite as well dressed as the others. He was also very quick and one blow hurt quite a bit. Quickly Causin rolled back several times and managed to bring back her axe for a powerful charge catching him with it twice, sending him flying back into a near wall. This gave her time to recover some stamina to give two wide sweeping swings which brought him down.

It was definitely best keep those ones at arms length so that they couldn't hurt her. Causin spotted a body on a wooden ledge down below and hopped to it, picking up the item he had. There was also a rat down below just to her right but she turned toward it and managed to jump and slam her axe into its head killing it instantly. The Hunter's Dream then gave her info on it, Giant Rat.

Stepping forward a few paces she can hear the growl of another large huntsman, she crept forward and saw the pole he wielded just at the side of the wall he was standing at. The new hunter would most certainly have to be careful how she handled him, Causin walked forward to draw his attention then immediately went backwards and drew her axe back for the strong attack catching him with both swings knocking him down. He managed to hit her before she pulled off her large sweeping swing forcing her to draw back before he finished his powerful combo.

The new hunter caught him on the next two sweeping swings finally putting an end to him thank goodness. Around the corner where he had been standing she found a corpse and was able to pick up an extra set of a garb that the body had. She wasn’t certain if she would use it or not but she would take it. Causin started he way back to take care of the rest of the rats which didn't prove up too much of a challenge, unless they came at her in numbers. Which they did, it didn’t matter however, her extended axe made quicker work of them all together.

However, she had forgotten the large huntsman. It clipped her side before she could move, luckily she was able to roll back and use a blood to recover, once close he got caught by her overhead swing which she followed up with a powerful wide sweeping swing. Causin doubled back to regain stamina and finished him off with another overhead blow.

To her surprise there were no blood vials this time like the other large huntsmen, she got a bloodstone shard. While Causin did find it frustrating that they came back so quickly, perhaps given how quickly they returned she could just gather up a bunch of bullets, blood vials and the Blood Stone shards. It would take several trips back and forth between the dream and Central Yharnam but she could certainly do it.

Quickly the new hunter made her way out of the sewer, making a mental note to clean off her boots and clothes from having to roll around in it. The scent was certainly putrid down there, if not just because it was a sewer but because of the bodies and blood. Causin was nearly sick from smelling it.

Causin got back to the very beginning where the long ladder was, it took her a few minutes to climb up given how tall it was. She really had to admire the city, even though it was obviously in a bad state the architecture was frankly incredible and quite gorgeous. Causin headed back up the two staircases to get to the bridge and made her way back to Gilbert's house. The new hunter decided to return to the dream for a moment so that she could restock on blood vials and bullets she had used and to recover from her injuries.

***

Now that she had investigated the sewer Causin headed in the direction Gilbert spoke of. She had to once more bring down the man with the torch and axe as he had course returned. She really had to wonder just how many of these sick people and beasts were in the city...perhaps maybe she shouldn't ask.

Causin went down a flight of stairs, she spotted two brick trolls. These things could be hard enough when one at time and now two? They appeared to be walking into different directions however, patrolling would be the proper term. One turned around and she took her chance to ran down the stairs and quickly ran up behind one and swing her axe down on top of him hard.

The blow only staggered him leaving her time to drop back to recover and jump forward to charge up a powerful swing which she did quickly as possible as the other one turned around and saw her. A wide sweeping swing is what it took to finally end one then Causin had to draw back so that the other one wouldn't hit her with the brick.

The silver haired hunter rushed forward, two sweeping swings staggered the brick troll. Causin rolled back and strafed to its side before it could hit her with its brick, which turned out to be a rapid combo that she certainly did not want to be on the receiving end of. Causin caught it with two of her powerful swings sending it flying back. She picked up their blood vials and continued forward approaching the fence that would block anyone from falling off into their doom.

As Causin gazed out at the city she could see a bridge in the distance, a considerable number of other buildings and even what looks like mountains in the far distance. The new hunter headed down the stairs, she found there was an elevator of sorts, however the gate to go in was closed and the elevator itself wasn't there.

She went back up the short staircase and found another staircase off to her left, the silver haired hunter made her way up being cautious of any beast or sick men that might be around. There was another pathway that led to the building she had been in before to reach the bridge, she opened up the door and found it was another little short cut. Causin didn't know how useful that would be but perhaps it could be used to avoid the trolls.

The new hunter headed back and went up a short flight of stairs finding a corpse with an item which she quite happily took after all, if she had too many of something she could always sell it to the messenger bath for some echoes, of which she still had to spend. She found a kennel of rabid dogs, most of them appeared to be locked up. It seemed rather cruel to kill them but when one busted out of its cage she didn't want to take any chances.

Causin killed the one that got free and then cut down the rest before they could get the same idea to try to attack her by escaping. Down a short alleyway path there was another dog patrolling around a corpses of which she did loot once the dog was down.

There was a short overgrown bridge not too far away, a dog was barking at a door with an incense lantern beside it. Causin cut down the dog quickly and then continued forward, after all these people didn't want to talk to her. The silver haired hunter came to a rather large but dimly-lit building down a flight of stairs, she could see a light which turned out to be one of the large huntsman holding a torch. Two overhead swings and one small slash staggered him. She was however too close to him and had to back away to recover some stamina, he didn't give her much time to do so. He was quickly swinging at her, luckily she dodged to the side and caught him with a wide sweep which brought him down.

Causin headed back upstairs where one could see a broken window, it looked like a window anyway. The new hunter broke the barrels in front of it and hopped through, there were some wooden ledges she could stand on, some corpses hanging from chains which she cut down carefully and picked up some items from corpses as well. Walking along she found an open doorway, Causin cut through some barrels to get through and found a hunter standing there who looked much like a crow.

“Hello.” She greeted as she neared the other hunter. “Oh, a hunter, are ya?” A woman’s voice with an accent. “And an outsider? What a mess you've been caught up in. And tonight, of all nights. Here, to welcome the new hunter.” The other woman gave her bold hunter marks, four of them. “Prepare yourself for the worst. There are no humans left. They're all flesh-hungry beasts, now.” That wasn’t true, Causin had talked to Gilbert and a few others...of course the others hadn’t been nice but they had talked. 

When she didn’t leave right away, the crow hunter said, “Still lingering about? What's wrong? A hunter, unnerved by a few beasts?” The woman chuckled. “No matter. Without fear in our hearts, we're little different from the beasts themselves.” The woman shook off a feathered cape as it had been clinging to and cocked her head when Causin still didn’t leave. “What are you still doing here? Enough trembling in your boots. A hunter must hunt.”

The new hunter glared. “If you let me speak you’ll know I’m not that scared. Yes, this is all freaky and I don’t understand anything but I’m still going, perhaps without the dream however I would be dead.” She snapped. “I just want to ask a couple of questions.”

The crow hunter leaned back slightly then sighed. “Forgive me for being short with you, the night of the hunt is long and there is much to do.” She brushed the beak on her masked and turned fully to Causin. “What is it you want to know?”

The new hunter was relieved, finally she could get some answers. “For starters, do you know of the dream?” She questioned folding her arms behind her back and shifting her weight to one foot.

The crow nodded. “I do, I was once there, but now I no longer dream.” She explained. No longer dream? “Alright...so it’s real then?” Causin asked, it had to be if someone else had been there but she wanted to be certain. “That is a matter of debate in truth.” The crow stated her arms crossed over her chest. “Some say it doesn’t, the hunters just are special. Others say yes, it is real only it resides on another plane of existence.” The crow explained while shrugging. “I firmly believe it is just another plane of existence.”

Causin nodded in agreement, going to the dream was like entering another realm. “What do you know of the Healing Church?” The note she read didn’t sound good and Gilbert knew very little.

The crow scoffed. “If you ever hear anything good about the church know this, it’s either coming from one who part of it or one who is scared of them and is sucking up, or of course the person is truly loyal to them. Listen to me when I say this, the Healing Church isn’t to be trusted. They have many shady dealings and while yes, the church will hunt the beasts, they also kill any who may turn into one.” Her tone was bitter and a little angry as she spoke.

“So...the beasts are people then?” Causin asked faintly, she hoped her theory was wrong. The crow noticed her expression and sighed. “Maybe, perhaps. I’ve never seen anyone turn it’s just what I’ve heard.” She rubbed the back of her head. “If you want to get a clear answer try to find a hunter named Djura, he is in Old Yharnam. He may have better answers about the beasts for you.”

Causin nodded in understanding. “What’s your name? Will I see you again?” The crow looked at her a moment then replied. “I am Eileen The Crow...Hunter of Hunters. If we met again I hope I won’t be hunting you.” The new hunter merely nodded to her and waved goodbye as she headed back the way she came. Hunter of hunters...perhaps some hunters went after people too and Eileen stopped them. Causin would be careful how she swung her axe in that case.

The new hunter backtracked toward the building, honestly she wasn't quite certain what it was although the barrels, bags and crates and some iron items which looked like tools she gathered perhaps it was a factory of sorts. She ran along the wooden ledges but didn't find a ladder leaving her to have to jump down she didn’t manage to roll to soften her fall, unfortunately she had to rush forward and bring down a large huntsman holding a pole. However she quickly realized it could have been a lot easier on her if she had just shortened her axe and did a heavy strike to his back she could have performed a visceral.

Causin heard a gun going off and used the wooden pillars keep the gunman from shooting at her, one swing of her axe brought him down, she picked up his bullets, as after all he no longer needed them. She took a closer look at what she thought had been an iron tool was really iron and wood and appeared to have a crank and chains. Although frankly she didn't even know what to make of it, Causin had never said anything like it before.

The silver haired hunter ran along to get the other large huntsman on the other side of the room, the last thing she needed was him causing her trouble. Too long sweeps of her extended axe and an overhead brought him down. She made it outside through an open doorway and by the smell it was likely another sewer. The new hunter saw two gunmen and a large huntsman with a pole, she rushed out to try to gain their attention and killed one gunman then ran back to the building. The large huntsman was after her and she didn't fancy her chances taking him on at the same time as being shot at.

Causin got inside the building and drew back in just enough time to charge up her axe before the large huntsman caught up with her sending him flying back giving her time to get to wide swings off before he could fully recover.

The new hunter ran back outside across the bridge to kill the gunman unfortunately he cracked off a shot into her shoulder making her stagger back slightly before she brought her ex down on top of him. She couldn't always get through unscathed.

There are more barrels, crates and bags outside, getting a look from the building from the outside she still couldn't really tell what it might have been but factory was her best guess. There were some carrion crows scattered about which she cut down with a single swing of her axe, they weren't very durable. The new hunter could see some wooden ledges down below with a corpse hanging off one just like in the other sewer she had seen, she managed to land on it and pick up the item from the body.

She jumped downward into the sewer not on all pleased she had to get the stuff on her boots again. Causin just needed the ladder to get back up to the main building, she went back inside the factory and look down finding the two bodies that she had to cut down on some stoneledges just some feet from the sewer.

The new hunter jumped down and rolled to soften her fall, there were a couple of giant rats but frankly they just were not a threat even when they came at her numbers. Wide swings took them out after all. She investigated one of the corpses and gathered up the item and drop down to the sewer killing two of the rats and pick uped... A skull or as the Hunter's Dream told her Madman's Knowledge. She brushed it off for a moment heading back out to come up the ladder to reach the other corpse.

There were more rats on the other side but again they weren't too big of a problem for her to handle and some even dropped her throwing knives. The other corpse she had cut down had a weapon she had yet to come across. Or perhaps she had simply didn't remember.

There was nothing more in this building so she headed back out to the ladder. Once back up to the top she crossed the overgrown bridge once more and ran along on the left side to the other bridge. The new hunter found a few more crows and a corpse that they had been picking at she took up the item and glanced to her side seeing there was a very long ladder near the bridge she had come off of. Down below she could see another iron ladder leading down to the main sewer.

There were a bunch of legless corpses past the ledge below, one corpse between them all was an item. Causin hopped down to get it-they all begin to move. “Oooh crap!” Causin cried as she quickly rolled away from them, that she certainly had not expected to happen. The hunter's dream gave her the name for the things, Rotted Corpse. The new hunter certainly believed that from how they looked and smelled horrible.

Causin continued her way down the sewer bringing down a few more of those rotted corpses picking up any blood vials they dropped, she ignored the carrion crows as they frankly were not worth it. The rotted corpses however proved to be a problem, they got particularly annoying when the rotted corpses and the crows teamed up on her near the end of the sewer tunnel. Causin gave pause, she could see a ladder just passed the carrion crows but also a tunnel where she could see something very large moving in the distance. Causin had no intention of finding out what that thing was, she didn't believe she could handle it at her current state.

She made her way up the long ladder. “Oh!” She cried in joy seeing the elevator door to her left she quickly ran toward it and activated it, sending her straight back up where the two brick trolls had been. However she had another pathway to go to, Gilbert had pointed her toward the Great Bridge, this clearly wasn't. Besides she could see several mob men standing at one end of the bridge, a brick troll and a man torch with and giant ball of something. Causin decided that she wasn't going to push her luck and went back. Not only that there had been another ladder, she wanted to investigate.

Backtracking up the longer ladder she couldn't help but notice how much quieter it was at least until she heard the moan of a brick troll which completely ruined the the nice silence. There was some carrion crows guarding a corpse which they were gleefully picking clean, she picked up another madman's knowledge from the corpse after they were dead. She took this moment to get a closer look at the thing.

The silver haired woman blinked her silvery green eyes at the skull in her hand. It wasn’t a normal skull by any means, it had an other worldly gleam to it and some slug looking thing made of stars with stars around it on the thing.

On a whim she crushed the skull in her hand causing an odd effect around her hand then...something in her mind changed and she thought a one entered her thoughts...much like she could see how many echos she had if she thought about it she could see her new item...her insight.

Strange, very strange. She ran along a bridge, killing a brick troll and found a door with an unlit lantern. She called out to ask for whoever was inside was okay but only heard, “Wretched outsider! Tryin to fool me to open this door? Heavens, the depths of depravity…” Wow, she had just been asking if they were okay and that’s how the woman replied? Causin shrugged and walked away heading to the ladder near the brick troll’s body.

Up ladder was a closed gate she had seen earlier and a lever, she pulled it then turned to a window that had a lantern hanging next to it. The window much like others was chained up, bared and had many locks on it. This one however was a little different, she could hear a music box playing.

The new hunter stepped closer to the window taking a chance and tapped a bar lightly. “Anyone in here?” She called gently. To her shock a young girl answered her. “Who...are you? I don't know your voice, but I know that smell...Are you a hunter?” The silver haired woman blinked confused, she had a scent? The hunter had a smell? Interesting. “I am a hunter little one.” Causin replied.

“Then, please, will you look for my mum?” The little girl asked in concern and fear. “Daddy never came back from the hunt, and she went to find him, but now she's gone too...I'm all alone...and scared…” The child whispered tearfully. 

“I’ll go find her little one.” Causin offered, she’d also try to find a place the girl could go to if her parents were dead. 

“Really? Oh, thank you!” Her voice broke a little. “My m-mum wears a red jeweled brooch. It's so big and...and beautiful. You won't miss it. Oh, I mustn't forget. If you find my mum, give her this music box.” The window opened a little, a small hand reached through the bars holding a tiny music box. Causin gently took it.

The girl closed the window again and said, “...It plays one of daddy's favorite songs. And when daddy forgets us we play it for him so he remembers. Mum's so silly, running off without it!”

Causin smiled as she held the music box. “I’ll find your mum and come right back.” She waved goodbye and saw a shadow behind the window do the same. The new hunter hoped to find the girl’s mother and father but with all the beasts and crazy people...she had a feeling if she did find them it would only be their dead bodies. But until she did find them, she would hope for the best. Looking around a little she found this gate she opened was one she had seen earlier, however it wasn’t a shortcut Causin saw herself using.

The silver haired hunter decided to head back down into the sewer and see what that large thing had been, it would turn out to be worth it to fight the Maneater Boar as it dropped many blood vials, gave a lot of echoes and was guarding useful items.

****

Causin paused after she stood up in the dream, the doll was standing up and looking at her. Slowly she walked over to the doll who not only was alive but could speak. “Hello, good hunter. I am a doll, here in this dream to look after you. Honorable hunter, pursue the echoes of blood, and I will channel them into your strength. You will hunt beasts...and I will be here for you.”

Causin couldn’t help but notice how much the doll looked like her and that her accent was nearly the same. She brushed it off for now watching the doll look toward the workshop then back to her a little surprised. “Did you speak with Gehrman? He was a hunter long, long ago, but now serves only to advise them. He is obscure, unseen in the dreaming world. Still, he stays here, in this dream...such is his purpose.”

The new hunter wasn’t certain of Gehrman advising hunters when he wouldn’t answer questions, maybe she’d have better luck with this doll here. “Can you tell me about the Messengers?” She asked the tall doll.

The doll smiled gently, looking over to the Messenger Bath as she spoke. “Ahh, the little ones, inhabitants of the dream…” She looked back to Causin still smiling. “They find hunters like yourself, worship, and serve them. Speak words, they do not, but still, aren't they sweet?” Causin asked her a few questions about blood echoes and her insight. The echos the doll could use to make her stronger and the insight could be used to call for help from hunters in other worlds. That made no sense but she’d just roll with it. 

The insight could also be used at another Messenger shop, it could be gathered in skull form as she already knew and from seeing something...not quite right. Causin still had questions but she didn’t think the doll could tell her anything, she merely asked to channel her echos. “Very well, let the echoes become your strength. Let me stand close. Now shut your eyes…” The doll knelt down and held one of Causin’s wrists between her hands where a bright swirling glow formed.

Causin found her eyes closing, in her mind she saw something. A whole chart was in her mind that she could look over. Her level of strength and power, her health, stamina, strength, skill, bloodtinge and arcane. She could also see here how many echos she had and how many would be used as she did this. Causin thought to increase her health, strength and bloodtinge- ah she didn’t have enough echos for more. She settled on that. There was a loud sound then next thing she knew, Causin felt stronger.

Looking back at the chart she saw she needed more echos to get stronger, she supposed it made sense. Sensing she was done the doll drew back and stood again. “Thank you, I need to go now.” Causin said after she opened her eyes. 

The doll smiled kindly. “Farewell, good hunter. May you find your worth in the waking world.” Causin nodded and headed over to the Yharnam Headstone to get back, she needed to see what was on the Great Bridge. She swore she heard something over there a while back.

Once she had left the doll cocked her head, this hunter seemed different than the last few that had come to this dream. Perhaps, this would be the one? She could only hope.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I was going to post this slowly so my friend had time to do her edits but she told me not to do that since she wants to get something that listens to her voice and writes for her so its easier for her to play Bloodborne that way and describe what she sees.
> 
> That being said the better description will...not be seen for a while I guess. But hey at least she plans to do it right?
> 
> Enjoy the chapter :D

Causin had gone back to talk with Iosefka a few times, she had even made good use of the woman’s blood vial each time. This time however, she said something different. “Ahh, you are safe, thank goodness. But, I'm afraid nothing will change my mind. I cannot open the door. I'll do what I can, of course. Perhaps this will help you, if only in some small way.” She gave Causin her blood vial once more.

“This night is long, but morning always comes.” Iosefka mused gently. “Someone of your caliber won't fail us, I am certain. And once the night of the hunt ends, we can speak face-to-face.” There was joy in her voice as she said this. “Then I can finally see what you look like. I shouldn't be thinking this, but I am rather looking forward to it. So please, be careful out there.” Causin smiled and rested a hand against the glass of the window, Iosefka must have seen the shadow of her hand and placed her own on the window over hers.

“I hope to see you as well Iosefka, take care until I return okay?” Causin told her a little worried, she had a cold feeling. She only got that when something bad was about to happen. “Oh I will, please don’t worry.” Causin would try not to, she called a kind goodbye to Iosefka as she made her way down the stairs to the lamp, it was time to go to the Great Bridge.

***

“You’ll understand if I say I don’t want to go over there right?” Causin asked the tiny Messenger beside her kneeling position, it moaned and looked over the bridge with her. The bridge was long and fairly wide, nothing at all was there and she didn’t like it. 

Causin may be a new hunter but her new...hunter sense for lack of a better word was screaming at her. “Well, I might as well get this over with.” She stood up and brushed off her Yharnam Hunter Garb that she bought at the dream, it was better than her travel clothing.

The silver haired woman extended her axe and ran onto the bridge. For a while nothing happened, but once she neared the end of it, a huge furry screaming beast jumped from above the bridge and landed right in front of her. Causin rolled back a few times and gasped at the thing. Words rang through her mind, Cleric Beast and she gained an insight. Well, that wasn’t comforting! One only got that from mad skulls and from seeing something that just shouldn’t be! This didn’t look good for her!

The beasts moved funny, using both legs with its large left arm was used to help it cover ground faster. She saw horns or antlers on its head and swore some of its ribs were poking out of its far too thin body. She dodged and rolled away from its swipes, The new hunter drew back her axe then swung it hard spinning twice catching it’s right arm just right that it caused a great deal of damage, she knew because it shrieked and held its arm in pain for a moment then it was after her again.

A molotov came to her hand when she thought of it, she threw it with all her strength right at the thing’s head. The beast screeched and dropped down, its head in perfect grabbing rang. Causin ran up recalling one of the Messenger notes telling her about parrying and visceral attacks, it looked like she had just pulled it off without trying. She thrust her hand into the thing’s head and grabbed whatever she could then ripped it out, blood and pieces of who knew what gushed out as the thing screamed.

However the Cleric Beast recovered quickly and took a swipe at her, she rolled out of the way and swung her axe in a half circle catching it’s left arm and leg then she ran off a bit to draw back her axe for a powerful spin blow. She missed the hit but dodged around the beast and started to drive her axe into and onto it, the thing wasn’t too bright as it did some power up giving her more time to wail on it. Causin tried another spin only for the beast to backhand her, knocking her back a little.

The silver haired woman ran back several paces to try the spin again only to have the beast rake its claws across her chest. She staggered but kept upright only to fall when the beast slammed her into the stone bridge. Good heavens that hurt, she rolled up quickly and used a blood vial. She ran at the beast, dodged around its side to get behind it and prepared to use her spin only to be backhanded again. That, was annoying.

She threw a molotov and hoped the beast wasn’t male as it hit the thing’s between the legs. It didn’t react too strongly so she guessed it might not be male. Causin found herself wondering at its intelligence as it took swipes around it and struck the bridge even though she wasn’t near it, she waited for it slow down a little than rushed forward and performed a series of combos on it managing to deal a strong a enough blow to stagger it for a moment before she had to move. It tried to grab her but she rolled behind it spun her axe hard hitting it both times.

The new hunter ran back and threw a molotov, unfortunately she missed as it was tearing around the bridge destroying coaches. She didn’t mind that since the things were in the way, so were the statues. She tried to ran up to get behind it but ran right into a slamming attack that nearly did her in, Causin rolled up quickly using a vial. She got off one hit before she had to back step to avoid getting slapped. She threw another molotov hoping to finish this quickly as the thing’s screaming and shrieking were starting to hurt her head.

The molotov didn’t finish the beast off but she did hit its arm stunning it. She rolled away before it could hit her and threw another molotov while it was charging up only to miss by a inch. “Wow…” She groaned unamused. It managed to crush her under its hands in its next attack but she rolled away to use a vial undoing the damage it had done to her. However it jumped on top of Causin undoing the work her blood vial had just done causing her to have to run away a little to heal once more.

The Cleric beast was now flailing around like mad trying to hit her but Causin was too fast most of the time. The new hunter managed to land a couple more blows to the beast she threw one final molotov that hit the best in the face making it fall onto the ground like it did before. Causin ran up grabbed hold of the beast and some of the insides and ripped her hand back out, the beast screamed as it fell down then burst into light vanishing. 

“Heh.” Causin shook back her clothing as it was clinging to her due to all the blood that landed on her while fighting. “I win.” The beast’s blood rained from the sky for a moment while Causin picked up a Sword Hunter Badge from the spot the beast died at. Oh, she could get new weapons from the shop with this!

Causin explored the bridge but only found some bullets and a door that wouldn’t open, she thought back to the note she found and wondered if this was what the note had meant. Nevertheless she couldn’t continue from here, there was still another path she hadn’t tried yet and she hadn’t found the little girl’s parents either.

****

The silver haired woman looked into the next area she was walking into, she could see a lot of blood, bodies, some trees and headstones. Was this a cemetery? She could hear the sounds of something getting smashed the splatter of something, going forward a touch more she saw a man dressed in a garb she hadn’t seen before cutting up some of the mob she came across. 

He stood straight when he realized she was behind him. “...Beasts all over the shop...You'll be one of them, sooner or later…” He hissed out a breath as he turned around then he was running at her.

A name flared into her mind making her breath catch. Father Gascoigne. His was one of the names in the music box...she had looked in it to hear the song and saw the names...his and Viola. Oh heavens, was this the girl’s father? Causin tested her theory by playing the music box, the man stopped coming after to her to hold his head and groan. He soon shook his head and was coming after her once more.

Yes, he was the child’s father but...he was much like the mobs now, too insane to listen and the music box did nothing but stun him so she could deal damage. Causin did try to talk to him while she fought him and while running away from him but all her effort got her were wounds and growling.

Causin had done her best to get through to the man, however ii became greatly in vain when he suddenly doubled over and grunting and groaning then he let out a roar and changed before her eyes. He had...just become a beast...her hunter senses screamed at her to run, Causin didn’t argue. She ran for the stairs hearing the once man now beast barrel after her.

Ten minutes full of running, spins of her axe and molotovs later he went down and Causin could swear...she heard him say, “Forgive me…” Causin swallowed hard as she took a key from the bloody puddle he left behind, his body much like the Cleric Beast had vanished in a puff of air and burst of light. She imagined the key was to the gate she had run past so many times however she wasn’t opening it just yet, there was a drop off to a smaller building from the stairs. Causin had seen a dead body on it and a crimson glint.

She dropped down to the small building and stared in horror. ‘No, no, no, no!’ Causin thought as she gazed at the brooch in her hand then to the dead body of the woman she knelt beside. The new hunter shut her eyes and let her head drop a little. She was right then...this woman was the girl’s mother and the man who turned into a beast had been her father.

From the woman’s state she guessed she had been killed by her husband...the words she heard him say as he died then...hadn’t been for her but for his wife. Causin felt a few tears fall down her face that she quickly rubbed away. Good heavens, what would she tell the poor girl?

Causin took a deep breath then hopped down the building, she lit a lamp that appeared then headed off for the stairs again to reach the gate, she really hoped to find someone who would take the girl in or there would be a safe place she could go. There had to be.

The hunter found herself walking through a sewer, she was trying hard not to think about that as she reached a tall ladder and started to go up. She ended up in a small study, there were huge bookcases filled with books long tables, chairs books and papers on the floor and tables and some globe looking things on the table. She also spotted a note. ‘“The Byrgenwerth spider hides all manner of rituals, and keeps our lost master from us. A terrible shame. It makes my head shudder uncontrollably.’”...Huh?” The note confused her, who wrote it and what was it for?

“Ugh forget it!” She stepped over to a chest, she opened it up and found a workshop tool. It vanished from her hands quickly, perhaps it went right to the dream. Causin approached two large sturdy doors, it took all she had to open them and when she did, she was greeted with a wonderful sight. It was a chapel full of the incense that drove off beasts, the statues were a little odd, but there was light, protection and more of the lovely craftsmanship to look at in here. Causin flicked a lamp that was in the room turning it on, she had an easy way to get here now.

The hunter noticed someone sitting on the floor and went over. “Hello there.”

The person perked up and turned their head to her. “...Hmm? Oh...you must be...a hunter. Very sorry, the incense must've masked your scent.” Did she really have an odd smell because she was a hunter? She’d need to look into that. “Good, good. I've been waiting for one of your ilk. These hunts have everyone all locked up inside. Waiting for it to end...It always does, always has, y'know. Since forever.” The person stated calmly.

The words brought Causin up short, how long had this hunt been going for? How were there still people alive in this city if it happened so much? Her thoughts were cut off by the person talking again. “But it won't end very nicely, not this time. Even some folks hiding inside are goin' mad. The screams of wimminfolk, the stench of blood, the snarls of beasts...none of em's too uncommon now. Yharnam's done fer, I tell ya.” They said mournfully. They suddenly bright however with their next words. “But if you spot anyone with their wits about 'em...Tell 'em about this here Oedon Chapel. They'll be safe here. The incense wards off the beasts. Spread the word...tell 'em to come on over. If you wouldn't mind...hee hee…”

Okay, this person was a little mad from the sound of it but looked harmless. Causin now had hope for the little girl and an old woman she had found a while back, she’d talk to the old woman first then go to the little girl.

***

Causin panted hard as she ran to the window she spoke to the girl from. Oedon Chapel was safe…the person there was a little shady and odd but she hadn’t sensed anything bad from them. The little girl could go there…then she would tell her the bad news. “Little one?” Causin called as she neared the window. The girl’s soft voice came. “Miss hunter? Is that you?”

“Yes.” Causin nodded. “I…I found your father.” The girl didn’t reply for a minute. “He’s not coming home is he?” She asked her voice cracking. Causin hated when kids picked bad times to be smart. “Yes…I’m sorry. I was too late to help him.” Regret was strong in her voice as she spoke. “My mum?” The girl questioned faintly.

‘Dear lord, don’t make me answer that.’ The new hunter thought. “I didn’t see her near your father.” It was true, he hadn’t killed her close to the entrance she found him at. It had taken a bit of walking. “Look little one, I found a safe place called Oedon Chapel.” She explained. “You need to go there, you can’t go through this alone.”

There was a sniffle. “Okay…Thank you for trying. I love you miss hunter. Just as much as mum, dad and granddad!” Causin blinked then smiled gently. “Do you need time to gather anything little one? I hear these hunts can last a while.”

“Oh, you can go miss hunter.” The girl replied. “I don’t want to hold you up-” Oh absolutely not. “No.” Causin quickly, sharply cut the child off. “You cannot and will not wander this place alone. As a hunter I can keep going no matter how many hits I take, you little one can’t. I will lead you there.”

“Okay! I’m sorry, I didn’t think about it. Just hold on miss hunter.” Two minutes passed then the glass from the window opened slightly and a small hand started to unlock all the locks until she got the window fully open. The little girl stepped down from the window in a pretty little night dress with a lovely white ribbon in her light blond hair. A pair of silvery blue eyes blinked at her in wonder. “Wow miss hunter, your beautiful!”

Causin laughed softly. “Why thank you little one. What all have you got in your bag?” The child looked through her bag as she answered. “Some food, a few toys and a change of clothes. I don’t think I forgot anything.” Causin nodded. “Alright, time to go then.”

The little girl was a tad surprised when the hunter lifted her up and carried her effortlessly on her back. “I already cleared the way in this direction so we won’t have to worry about anything. When I say, either get down or hold on very tight. You, need to do it alright? I don’t want want you hurt or worse.” The girl had to be scared in this situation, Causin wouldn’t deny she felt fear here in this city. “Don’t worry about hurting me.” She added, she could handle a child hanging onto her, it wouldn’t be a problem.

“Okay.” The girl knew her home could be a dangerous place. Her daddy had often told her about the hunts and how bad they were. She had wondered about this blood her daddy talked about along with others but her mother always gave her a sharp look and told her to put it out of her mind. It must be something bad.

“Hey, miss hunter?” She asked as her new pretty friend made her way down a ladder where a large dead man was. “Yes little one?” The girl must have questions. “What’s the blood?” She asked. “Mommy and daddy never told me but I heard whispers about it.”

Causin frowned. The hunter knew very little about blood, sure, she used some to heal but she got the feeling the blood that was whispered about was something far more important. “Sorry, I don’t know a lot about it. I’m new here and only became a hunter…this afternoon I think.”

The little girl blinked, adjusting her hold on the pretty hunter’s shoulders. “So you’re like daddy. He came from somewhere else too.” Causin nodded. “I did…I come some place pretty far away. I came here because of a family locket, I believe my family on my mom’s said come from this city.” She explained, careful as she made her way down another ladder.

“A locket? Is there a picture inside?” The girl asked seeing the small thick rope on the back of the hunter’s neck, it had to hold the locket. Causin nodded. “Yes, I look much like the women in the locket one more so over the other. I’m hoping to find them.” She knew of course chances of finding them alive were low, but she still wished to find them.

****

The little girl had done her best not to see all the dead people in the streets as the hunter ran through them wanting to get her young charge to safety as soon as she could. They came to a house lit with an incense lantern, a man inside was coughing loudly. Causin gave the window a sad look then walked through the open gate to the left. “Okay, hold on tight.”

A man with a torch was standing down a small flight of stairs he turned around and tried to hit them with his burning torch but the hunter stepped back quickly and swung a small axe at the man. The little girl closed her eyes and ducked her head not wanting to watch.

A few seconds later there was a groan and the man was dead. The hunter gathered a few bullets from him and kept moving but didn’t go far. She crouched near the corner of the wall. “I need you to get down now little one. The…beasts up ahead are tough and there are two. I don’t think I can get through without getting hurt and I don’t want you hurt because of me.”

“Okay.” She let go and sat on the cold stones to wait for her pretty friend to come back. She heard of lot of sounds most from large sounding…things and a few from her friend. Thankfully the hunter came back...looking far more bloody than she been before. “Sorry for the mess but those guys don’t play around…by the way little one what’s your name?” Causin asked lifting the girl back up. “Lily.” She replied as she got on the hunter’s back again.

The hunter extended her axe and flipped it behind her to support the little girl better. “I’m Causin, nice to meet you.” They went up an elevator and ended up running from a large group of crazy people. “Causin…won’t they see us here?” Lily asked worried as she her new friend ran away from the people and stood calmly near the elevator.

“Nope.” Causin replied cheerfully. “They appear to be a little dumb. Just watch.” Soon enough all the crazy people had caught up but stopped at the top of the short staircase then got rolled over by a large flaming ball. “What?” Lily asked not believing what she just saw. 

“They just stop there every time I come this way. A big guy is up a head and another with a shield and two fast ones that can easily do me in so…I’m just going to run.” She adjusted Lily and held the axe under the small child’s body more carefully. “You hold on as tight as you can okay?”

“Yeah.” Lily clung to Causin and shut her eyes not wanting to see any monsters or crazy people trying to kill them. That didn’t mean of course that she couldn’t hear them and that was just as scary.

***

“Ah, finally!” Causin breathed as she sat on the floor near the person who asked her to bring people here for safety. Lily got down and said a polite hello to the odd shady person. He happily greeted her in return.

“You’ll be safe here Lily, so no worries.” They had made it with almost no trouble. “Yeah…what happened to mummy’s brooch?” Lily questioned as she started to unpack her bag. Causin froze then her shoulders sagged and she sighed. “I was sure you had your eyes closed.”

“They were...until the scary sounds stopped.” She had seen her mother’s body while the hunter ran. The hunter sighed heavily. “I have it. Do you want it? I wasn’t lying earlier. When I first found your dad she wasn’t near him.” Lily nodded sadly. “Okay…can…I have it now?” Causin wordlessly handed Lily her mother’s brooch. “I’m sorry. If I was able to save her I would have.”

“I believe you.” Lily nodded in understanding. The hunt was still going on, her new friend couldn’t stay. “Will you…visit?” Causin nodded giving her a small smile. “Of course. I also want to try and find more people, being in a house with just locked windows and doors and incense might not be enough.” She muttered thinking back to the houses she had seen so far.

Just as Causin was about to leave Lily remembered what she forgot. “Oh Causin, my sister doesn’t know I left! What will she do when she gets back to the house!” Lily called after her. Both the person on the floor and Lily caught her last words before she vanished to the hunter's dream. “Oh, S!”


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Before anyone comments about the lore here for Old Yharnam please go to chapter 1 and look toward the links left there, DarkSan explains things there.
> 
> But I'll do it too. Bloodborne's lore isn't fully clear, as such if you like different theories thats fine but DarkSan is going with what you read here.

Causin had gone back to the Central Yharnam lamp and sat outside the house Lily came from for around an hour before she gave up and left.

Lily was worried but since she didn’t know where her sister went and Causin didn’t know her way around Yharnam fully, looking for the girl would be very hard.

The new hunter started her way back around central Yharnam. She visited Gilbert hoping to convince him to go to the Chapel like Lily but he merely coughed and asked her not to worry about him. He also gave her a flamesprayer, Causin hoped she never found a use for something so dangerous but did thank him.

****

Another hour was spent trying to find Lily’s sister, Causin sighed heavily as she walked up the stairs to where Iosefka worked in her clinic. She wanted to ask the woman about the little girl, if she hadn’t heard or seen anyone Causin would ask she keep her ears open in case she heard a young voice.

Before she could say a word a voice spoke up. “...Oh, well, hello…” She straightened up and her eyes narrowed, that didn’t sound like Iosefka. Glancing down to the broken window she saw a weapon in the woman’s hand, a threaded cane. Iosefka didn’t have a weapon...who was this?

“Splendid. let me ask you a small kindness. You're soon off to hunt, I presume?” Certainly not her, Iosefka knew that she was hunting. “Then, if you find any survivors...Tell them to seek Iosefka's Clinic. Upon my Hippocratic oath, if they are yet human. I will look after them, perhaps even cure them.” Cure? If there was an easy cure this city wouldn’t be in trouble right now, not only that Causin didn’t like this woman’s tone and something in her was...quite weary. “This sickness, these beasts, they are not to be feared. This time the night is long. I may be trapped here, but I should do something to help. I'll even offer a reward for your cooperation. Tempted? Well, off you go, then.”

Oh-kay, Causin did NOT like how this woman talked or how she sounded! Not only that her hunter senses were going off, it wasn’t screaming like when she was being attacked or about to be but whoever this woman was, she wasn’t Iosefka and she wasn’t safe.

Causin would keep sending people to the Chapel, she had a feeling they would live longer.

***

“Causin!” Lily cheered as she appeared near the lamp. The little girl was sitting beside the person on the floor showing them something in a book she had. “I’ve been sharing my book with this nice person…” She looked behind here where an old woman was sitting, grumbling to herself. “I tried to greet her but she only made a face at me.” The hunter nodded in understanding, the woman seemed a bit hard and harsh. Considering the city she may have had to be that way to keep going.

“I’ve got work to do little one, I promise to come back as soon as I can.” Causin said gently patting Lily’s head. The girl nodded. “I understand...you won’t die like daddy?” The new hunter shook her head. “I don’t think I can, dear. I’ll be back soon.”

The little girl began showing her book to the person on the floor again as Causin started her way outside heading for the door off to the left, well doorway there wasn’t a door there. Outside was a tall man, pale, carrying a long thick stick and bright lantern. Oddly wearing a bell around his neck and of course that outdated clothing. The dream called him Church Servant.

Upon seeing her he stopped to make a noise and point at her giving Causin plenty of time to swing at him, he didn’t seem to take as much damage as the other sick men had. Well, she would just be careful, she was in no hurry to find out how that stick of his felt getting slammed into her body. He dropped a few bullets when she brought him down then another man was coming her way from some stairs, she took care of him with a couple of good timed swings.

“Hmm clothing-Wha-Ahhh!” Causin rolled out of the way just in time before some...cosmic looking thing got her. She rolled too far and smacked into the rundown dry well. “Ow...dang what was that?” She gazed up at the tall Chapel, nothing was there but it just didn’t seem right.

Causin stood and brushed herself off. Looking around she found more headstones around, a couple dead trees, ruins from buildings...and sadly a dead body with six blood vials. The vials went to her storage in the dream as she had a full twenty.

She looked around a touch more, this place seemed ever so faintly in better condition but much was destroyed as was Central Yharnam. Causin noted however the buildings were a bit more...fancy here. Perhaps the rich lived here? Or maybe those of The Healing Church? She wasn’t sure but this spot was a bit better looking.

The new hunter headed forward following the broken fence down some stairs to a smaller chapel? She wasn’t sure, there looked to be a small bonfire, a couple of the normal looking sick men and a dog-oh wonderful a bloody dog! Causin wasn’t sure what was worse, the dogs or crows.

Once she had cleared them, Causin found some coldblood dew, and a few molotov cocktails. She had to say again, this place looked a bit better put together than Central Yharnam. The plant life was far more dead, some stone and brick was tron up from buildings and the ground but really other than that it didn’t look bad.

Causin had gotten past two more dogs and a gun man, she had found a couple more bodies wearing some odd garb and both had madman’s knowledge. Inside the little chapel was a large stone coffin and up above where she stood was a lever. Causin was little surprised to see the thing move after she pulled it.

Before she went down there though, there was another doorway and she hadn’t explored the Cathedral Ward yet. Turning back a bit she moved to a doorway she had seen and found herself outside. It looked like...a grave of some sort, perhaps a important person? Wait...someone was down there.

Slowly she walked down the steps and whispered a soft hello holding her axe tightly. The person, no man in front of her stood and turned slightly giving her a kind smile. “You're a beast hunter, aren't you?” He asked calmly.

“Ah...yes I am.” He was...being nice. Causin hadn’t expected that to be honest.

“I knew it. That's precisely how I started out! Oh, beg pardon, you may call me Alfred. Protege of Master Logarius, hunter of Vilebloods. So, what say you? Our prey might differ, but we are hunters, the both of us. Why not cooperate, and discuss the things we've learned?” Vilebloods? And who was Logarius? Well, Causin wasn’t about to turn down information.

“Let’s talk a bit.” She chirped using her axe as a post to lean on. This pleased the man. “Oh-hoh! Very good, very good indeed! Take this, to celebrate our acquaintance.” He passed her some fire paper, explaining that is she rubbed it on her weapon it would becoming inflamed.

Causin asked him about The Healing Church, she learned is the fountainhead of blood healing. He didn’t know the ins and outs of the place but he knew some little things, Causin didn’t mind as she didn’t know anything at all. Alfred had head the holy medium of blood healing was in the main cathedral, if she sought blood healing, and the church was willing she should go. Not the best information, but he had said he didn’t know much.

She next asked him about Byrgenwerth, she had read the word before. Alfred said it was an old place of learning and...the tomb of the gods, carved out below Yharnam. Every hunter knew that it seemed. Though last Causin checked...a god didn’t die...it was a god, they just...didn’t do that far as she knew.

Alfred went on to explain how once a group of young Byrgenwerth scholars found a holy medium deep within a tomb. That lead to the founding of The Healing Church and the start of the blood healing.

Everything sacred in Yharnam can be traced back to Byrgenwerth. Now days, the college is deep within the woods abandon and decrepit. The Healing Church deemed the place forbidden ground...why? Alfred wasn't sure how many of its scholars were still alive. It seemed however only they knew a password through a gate somewhere.

Causin thanked him for his time then went on her way, she had a great deal of exploring to do still. Alfred hadn’t had much for her but it was far more than she had before, she hoped to find a notebook somewhere to write everything. The hunter knew if she thought about it all too much she’d get hurt in battle because she was distracted.

****

Backtracking a little Causin was able find several notebooks in the clinic along with pens. She gathered up a lot of them and started writing down what little she knew was going on and all her questions, she would add more to her notebooks as time went on and she gathered more information. The new hunter got back to the cathedral ward and spent some time with Lily, she didn’t want the girl to get lonely after all. The person who offered the ward was nice and all but Causin was still uncertain of them. The old woman wasn’t even considered company, she just snapped and was harsh or rude.

Causin stayed with Lily for around an hour then she went off back to the little chapel she had found with the moving coffin. Something was down there, it was worth looking into. She once more killed the dog and sick people with it then descended down the stairs that had been opened up to her.

Once more she admired the architecture of this place, the craftsmanship was wonderful and must have been difficult to manage. All the statues were well made the engraving carvings and perhaps cultural looks were just awe inspiring. However Causin didn’t let herself get caught up in it, something about this city was off, she knew that from the start. 

“Why do these statues lament?” She wondered aloud looking over the statues of women crying or screaming holding up candles...wait were they holding up the candles or are they praying or praising someone or something? A good question, she noted this in one of her books, as an afterthought she added the Messenger statues she had seen a few times.

“Must have taken time...was the floor and walls carved out or built up this way?” She once more wondered. Honestly while most of this city was in ruins this area didn’t look quite as bad but regardless the work put into the buildings was just amazing. Causin found another dead body wearing the same odd garb as some of the others she had seen, she hoped the person was in a better place now, she whispered an apology as she picked up a blood gemstone. Good she needed more of those. The new hunter would apply it later on.

Another staircase lead farther down, it was also darker down there. She set her lantern at her waist, it helped but not much. With an annoyed scowl Causin drew out her torch lighting up the area better. She got down the stairs nearly running forward when she heard the sound of a beast. Carefully the silver haired woman peeked around the corner of the doorway spotting one of the large wolves. She sheathed her sword into the large stone hammer she had bought a while back and drew it up over her shoulder, the doll may have helped her get stronger with the use of those echos but this thing was still heavy.

The new hunter rushed the beast making a quick last second side step as it jumped at her, her movement saw her behind the beast which she took full advantage of slamming her stone hammer hard into its hind quarters making it jerk. She made wide side swing catching the beast perfectly and had just enough time to fully draw back the hammer and smash its head before it slashed her. “Blood stone shards, good.” The things could make her weapons better, there was no reason not to collect them. If she ever had too many she could sell them, they got her a good number of echos.

She removed her sword from the hammer waving her torch around to see better. The floor was a bit torn up and there was some kind of mist or fog along the floor. There were pots like the ones in Oedon Chapel here she broke a couple but found no bones. So they weren’t the church’s incense then? She didn’t know how human bones made that stuff either but...well wait what if these had been but they were drained now? But what happened to the bones? There should at least be ash left. The new hunter noted down the question for later thinking. A few boxes were in this room as well but nothing was in them...or they had been looted and closed once more that wouldn’t be a shocker.

“Why is there cloth hanging from the ceiling…” She had only just noticed it. What was the point of that? Had people hang their clothes to dry here? Wouldn’t really be the place to be honest you did that where the sun could reach.

Causin shrugged it off, this place was odd and the most of the people not much better. “More stairs? How far down does this go?” She wondered aloud noting more boxes pots and a bench The next stairs down was broken leaving a huge gap, she could see a dead body across the way, without the stairs she had to use the ladder in place. She wrote this down, maybe a couple beasts destroyed this spot and the ladder places later on so people could still come and go.

Once down she came to two large cabinets mostly filled with dust, broken dishes and jars, another bench, boxes and pots too. She even spotted some of the broken stair. Luckily the rest of the stairs up weren’t broken so she could get to the body, looked to be a civilian she wished his spirit peace wherever it might be and took four antidotes off him. Antidotes? Perhaps for the sickness or maybe something else.

Much like with all the items she picked up words rolled through her mind. Small medicinal tablets that counteract poison. A counter to poison, that would be handy. She moved back down the stairs and found the rest of the broken staircase another yet another bit of stairs still going down.

Causin came to a large open space, the floor was torn up, there was some overgrowth tall falling apart pillars and a small extra walkway with pots, boxes and a bench. She found a blood cocktail hidden by some pots, she merely broke then they were empty anyway.

“Oh thank goodness, a lamp.” She breathed lighting it. The Messengers came up praying at the lamp and greeting her with their groans. “Old Yharnam?” She looked to the tall wooden doors down the near hall. “This is… an older part of the city. Wait, didn’t Eileen say there was a hunter here?” Yes she had the hunter named Djura, he knew a bit about the beasts Causin hoped he’d be willing and able to answer her questions.

“‘This town is long abandon. Hunters not wanted here.”’ Causin blinked staring at the note for a minute. This part of the city was no longer in use then? Why did Djura stay here then? Was he still trying to get of the beasts so one day it could be used once more? “Only one way to find out.” The new hunter pushed the doors open with some difficulty, the doors in this city were heavy.

She heard a sound of scratching and followed it paying no mind to her surroundings just yet, she hadn’t seen this beast yet...it also ran away from her. Wandering Madness, the dream called it. Causin managed to smash it with her hammer getting blood stone shards from it, one off a body too. She dropped down some seeing there was some building down below she could reach. She found a hunter’s torch which was better than her current one and new beasts, she wasn’t too interested in getting with them and there were only two so she merely used a bold hunter mark to get back to the lamp.

This time when she stepped out of the building she froze in shock at the sights and smells and it wasn’t in a good way. There were beasts tied up on what looked to be crosses and were burning, the trees and other plant life were burnt or dying and the buildings she could see...were either in ruins or were falling apart to join the ruined buildings. This whole place was in ruins in fact! The fences, the ground...statues were chained up and-

“Oh heavens…” Causin trailed off gagging. The pile of what she thought was wood smoking...was not wood. It was bodies...human bodies. The smell here was much like the rest of the city only burning and cooking flesh, blood and beasts was added. Good heavens she was going to be sick!

“You there, hunter. Didn't you see the warning?” A man’s voice called to her, Causin turned a bit seeing the sunlight reflecting off something on a tall building. “Turn back at once. Old Yharnam, burned and abandoned by men, is now home only to beasts. They are no harm to those above.” He explained calmly. “Turn back...or the hunter will face the hunt…” Causin had no trouble catching what he was saying, she had questions though. “Wait!” She called. “You are the hunter Djura?”

There was a pause. “I am, who are you, what do you want?” Causin covered her nose as she answered. “My name is Causin, I want to talk with you!” Another pause. “Very well, do not attack the beasts, in fact stay there my friend will lead you to me.”

The new hunter went back to the building she came out of and sat on the steps to wait keeping her nose covered, that smell was just horrible. Soon another hunter was coming her way wearing garb and wielding a weapon she hadn’t seen yet. “Causin yes? Follow me.” She did so, careful not to harm any beasts and noting this man didn’t harm them either. He merely pushed them back and rolled out of the way of attacks.

They came to a large building that had a ladder on it. “Djura’s up there, don’t pull anything funny. He may be old but a young thing like you has no chance.” Causin frowned. “Would you not think the worst please? I want to talk with him that’s all.” She started her way up the ladder having an easy time seeing more ruins of this place, there was another ladder that went farther up she gathered Djura was there. She began to climb once more.

Causin finally reached the top and stood to face Djura. Behind him was a gatling gun. His garb looked rather ashy and he had a weapon she hadn’t seen before. “What brings you to Old Yharnam?” He asked her calmly. “I have questions about...well everything really. I tried asking Eileen the Crow about the beasts she said I’d be better off asking you.”

Djura was silent a moment then sat down. “Take a seat, this isn’t going to short if my guess is correct.” She sat across from him and asked her question. “Firstly The Healing Church...what are your thoughts? Secondly…” She swallowed hard. “The beasts…”

“They aren’t beasts.” Djura said his tone sad. “They’re people.” Causin’s eyes shut and her head lowered. “I was afraid of that.” She muttered. “Not many make that connection...as for my thoughts of the church...you’ll never trust a member of the church after I finish my tale are you certain you want to hear this?”

The new hunter nodded. “The church seems shady to me and Eileen didn’t have much good to say either.”

Djura nodded then began. “The people here in Old Yharnam started to get sick one day, took to calling it the ashen blood sickness. Little tablets were made to give some relief but it was no cure.” He nodded to her when she held out some of the tablets letting her know that yes, that was them. “Members of The Healing Church came as people began to fall so ill they died. They offered a miracle cure, it would cure them all. It was a blood ministration. They didn’t lie, all those who were sick recovered wonderfully but then...then people started changing and attacking others. The church gathered up us Powder Keg hunters to burn Old Yharnam to the ground and kill anyone and anything we came a cross.”

“What?!” Causin cried. “Even those who had never been sick or hadn’t turned?!” Djura nodded grimly. “One woman I found begged me to kill her because of something she saw. I was confused of course that she wanted to die but her green eyes were so full of terror I asked what happened. She saw some members of the healing church put something in the water the people here drank from, she didn’t see what it was but not long after people were getting sick.”

Causin lost what little color she had. “They poisoned the people...to get them to use their blood…” She stated in shock. “That’s right. She wanted me to kill her so the church wouldn’t take her, if they poisoned the people to get their blood around what would they do to her? In an act of mercy I killed her. Then made a mistake of confronting the church. My fellows and myself are branded as heretics...not just for what I said but our hunting methods aren’t well liked.”

“Erm...why not?” He laughed. “We like to blow things up, all our weapons either blew things up or caught fire. We even made a remote molotov but like I said the church didn’t like it. Not that the things they do is any better.” Causin nodded bringing out a couple notebooks. “Can you write down your story here? I’m gathering information to understand everything better. Once everything is all together I’ll go over it all and put it all in an organized folder.”

Djura was impressed with this, he gladly wrote down what happened to Old Yharnam and to her joy he wrote down what all the Powder Keg weapons were and made a minor sketch of each one. He wasn’t great at drawing but he managed. “Thank you Djura.” Causin bowed her head to him as they stood. “I certainly won’t be trusting The Healing Church after this...I also wonder what else they may have done...do they still use the blood?”

“They do.” She pressed her lips into a line. “They saw what happened here, why do they continue?” He shook his head. “I couldn’t say, I don’t often leave this place. My friend down there does at times to gather more supplies for us but he doesn’t talk to anyone or search out the church.” Causin nodded then asked. “I don’t suppose you know where the Holy Chalice is? It’s the other reason I came here.”

Djura pointed out a far off building to her. “I don’t know who it was that turned down there but they became something nasty, honestly they may be from the church. That being the case I won’t mind if you kill them to get the thing.” The new hunter look down to his friend. “Could he come with me? It’ll be easier to keep from hurting anyone if I have help.” Her words won her a small smile from the older hunter. “If he’s willing to go with you, feel free. Careful out there, you may have a dream to hold you but wounds still hurt.”

Causin waved a cheerful goodbye to him then started her way back down to to ask the other hunter for help.

***

Djura’s friend hadn’t stayed with her the fight the beast but she found one the Messenger gifts allowed her to call for a hunter to help her. A glowing crimson spot with Alfred’s name floating above it made things quite clear. If she rang her Old Hunter bell he would show up to help her. Causin saw no reason not to.

She didn’t regret getting his help as the beast had poison. It got worse the closer it came to death, Alfred ended up going down Causin only just lived and got a chalice from it. She turned on a lamp and then considered the other bells she had. She couldn’t seem to use them inside this building so she went back out and rang the smaller one, in a few minutes she found herself being transported to the same spot only there was another hunter there who was more than happy to explain that there was other hunters and other worlds out there. The hunter couldn’t tell her whys or hows merely stating this was Yharnam, sometimes you didn’t question it.

Causin gained insight and a good lot of echos from helping her fellow hunter then was sent back to her own world. With this new knowledge she knew she could get insight and more echos from helping others plus it would just be a nice thing for her to do. They needed help why not give it?

The new hunter decided to head back to the dream use her echos, go see Lily then check the girl’s house to see if her sister had returned yet, after that she’d go around the Cathedral Ward explore and take care...of the people sick due to the blood. She had the idea why the blood was doing this, another thing to look into.

Little did she know there were several hunters in other worlds who had done the same things she was, hunting for information to understand. She would meet them as she continued on.


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have to say I like when DarkSan writes the boss battles, when I asked her she told me when she wrote them she was going off what really happened when fighting one of the Bloodborne bosses. It's easier for her to do when she can look at her recording too, she does have a walkthrough lorethrough of Bloodborne. If you wanna see its here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W4lelpnstpM&list=PLPdPkbqc-7AnuhiUhHMvGNsPsaftRpF4C
> 
> And in this chapter Maria's hunter appears finally :D
> 
> That all said I hope you enjoy the next few chapters I post, DarkSan has quite a few done. I'm posting slightly slow though so people aren't stuck waiting on an update...like with the stuff I write ugh. Writers block is mean :(

**(Dusk)**

Antidote: Small medicinal tablets that counteract poison. Used to treat ashen blood, the baffling sickness that ravage Old Yharnam long ago. These tablets only provide short-term relief. The ashen blood ailment eventually trigger the spread of the beastly scourge.

Molotov Cocktail: Explodes in raging flames when thrown against an object. One of the oldest hunter tools available in the workshop. Since the tragedy that struck Old Yharnam, fire has become a staple in beast hunts, and is thought to cleanse impurity. Certain types of beasts have an abnormal fear of fire.

Abnormal fear of fire...yeah sure. Causin had to scoff at that, they feared it because of how quickly it killed them. She continued to get information on her items. She skipped over the oil urns and blood cocktails as she didn’t use them. The oil urn made molotovs burn longer on beasts and the cocktail distracted them.

Throwing Knife: Throwing knife with a finely serrated blade. One of the old hunter Henryk’s favorite weapons. Does not cause a great deal of damage to beasts but with deft use, can distract some attackers and keep them at bay.

Who was Henyk? She hadn’t heard of him but then she hadn’t heard of many of her fellow hunters. She didn’t think she’d use the things, the knives would be sold.

Poison Knife: A knife slathered in poison. This curved knife is as thin and sharp as a surgeon’s blade. Often used for self-defense by special doctors in The Healing Church. They say that hunters traditionally avoid the use of poison, likely because the poison is too slow to act in the heat of battle.

This would be sold as well, Causin could see how these would be useful but she didn’t want to use them.

Fire Paper: Coarse paper that applies fire to weapons when rubbed. A hunter tool found in The Healing Church workshop. Since the tragedy that that struck Old Yharnam, fire has become a staple in beast hunts and is thought to cleanse impurity. Certain types of beasts have an abnormal fear of flame.

Bold Hunter’s mark: Dangling, upside-down rune etched in the mind of a hunter. The image upon thins parchment allows one to envision the rune with clarity. Allows a hunter to awaken again without losing blood echoes, a trick that seems nearly too good to be true.

Eileen had given her a couple and she found a few more, not only that the Messenger Bath seemed to be selling them.

Shining Coins: Various coins that are particularly luminous. There are very few uses for spare change during the hunt, but these will serve as guides through the darkness. Or, one could save them until morning, if it ever comes.

Saving them seemed like a good idea...but she doubted she’d be able to use them much. The people in the city didn’t like outsiders, there was no doubt in her mind they would refuse her coin just for that fact.

Blood Stone Shard: A solid shard that forms in coldblood. After death, a substance in the blood hardens, and that which does not crystalize is called a blood stone. At the workshop, these bloodstones are embedded in weapons to fortify them.

Ritual Blood (1) : Material used in Holy Chalice ritual. One of the basic ingredients used to satiate a Holy Chalice is this incoagulable blood. When all is melted in blood, all is reborn.

The hunter shivered and shuddered as she put the blood in her storage, she picked it up in Old Yharnam. Causin wasn’t sure she wanted to know what made this suitable for a ritual.

By allowing the power of the dream to teach her about the items she had learned a few things, she was tempted to do the same with the weapons she bought but decided to only do it with what she would be using.

Threaded Cane: One of the trick weapons of the workshop, commonly used by hunters on their duties. Sufficiently deadly as a rigid bladed cane, but also serves as a whip when its blade is split into many. Concealing the weapon inside the cane and flogging the beasts with the whip is partly an act of ceremony, an attempt to demonstrate to oneself that the bloodlust of the hunt will never encroach upon their soul.

Ludwig’s Holy Blade: A trick weapon typically used by Healing Church hunters. It is said that the silver sword was employed by Ludwig, the first hunter of the church. When transformed, it combines with its sheath to form a greatsword. The Healing church workshop began with Ludwig, and departed from old Gehrman's technique to provide hunters with the means to fight more terrifying beasts, and perhaps things still worse.

The hunter spent a few more minutes going over everything she had and adding things to her notebooks. Once finished she used the Yharnam Headstone to get back to the Cathedral Ward. She still needed to explore the area.

~~*~~

Headstones were in odd places, more coffins lined the streets, boxes, bags, the torn up ground slightly run down buildings and nearly broken and broken fences. Dead or dying plant life, wheelchairs scattered about…a big and sad concern was baby carriages, they were empty but still. The lamenting statues weren’t new but there was some odd animal and human smaller statues.

Oddly enough she found some candles that were lit and some lamps. Causin had found a locked gate but instead of buying an emblem to open it she followed a note’s advice that there was another way around.

The enemies she came across...only two were new, the stick wielding men the dream called church servants and huge giants with long, large axes that were called Chapel Giants. There some brick trolls and crows as well. She had also found another wandering madness that dropped blood stone shards, she had a hard time killing it as one of the giants had a ball and chain that nearly did her in while she was trying to kill it.

The hunter was certain she had found the other side of the door to the Great bridge, strangely enough she couldn’t open it. Causin gathered she needed a key.

The new hunter started her way back to the cathedral returning her cane to normal, she found Eileen. She approached ensuring she made noise so as not to startle the other hunter. Eileen turned to her slightly. “Oh, hello there. Perfect timing. I must warn you...not to go near the tomb below Oedon Chapel in the Cathedral Ward. Henryk, an old hunter, has gone mad. And he's my mark…” Henryk? Causin had gotten his name from one of the items she sold, he went mad? Even though Eileen told her to stay away she couldn’t, that way lead to Lily’s house and she wanted to check and see if her sister was back yet.

Bad idea. The second she got down the stairs the old hunter came after her, Causin wasn’t willing to fight him where so many headstones were; one, because her weapon would catch on them and she might got pinned and two...she didn’t want to damage them, it was disrespectful.

Eileen thankfully met her at the top of the stairs just as the mad hunter caught up with her, together they managed to bring him down it took a good deal of effort though and both were wounded.

The hunter of hunters breathed hard and turned to her. “That wasn't necessary of you...But you have my thanks. We made it with our lives. You're not bad at all. You must've killed Gascoigne as well, then?” The younger hunter nodded grimly. “He was falling apart, I'm sure it had to be done. but try to keep your hands clean. A hunter should hunt beasts. Leave the hunting of hunters to me…” She chuckled softly and baid Causin farewell. Before leaving Causin picked up something from where the old hunter had fallen...a rune? It said heir on it. Checking it she found it told fully what it did.

A Caryll rune that transcribes inhuman sounds. The “Heir” sees sentimentality in the warmth of blood, acknowledging this as one of the darker hunter techniques. More Blood Echoes gained from visceral attacks. Perhaps the “Heir” is a hunter who bears the echoing will of those before him.

Handy but...how did she use this? Her tool for the blood gems wasn’t going to work...maybe it was a tool she didn’t have yet. The hunter would consider it later, she needed to go back to the dream.

~~*~~

Causin stared at the item she held in her hand not quite sure what she holding even with the information given to her. One Third of Umbilical Cord. A great relic, also known as the Cord of the Eye. Every infant Great One has this precursor to the umbilical cord. Every Great One loses its child, and then yearns for a surrogate. The Third Umbilical Cord precipitated the encounter with the pale moon, which beckoned the hunters and conceived the Hunter's Dream. Use to gain Insight and, so they say, eyes on the inside, although no one remembers what that truly entails.

This...looked like nothing she had ever seen before and what was a Great One? She looked around the worksop that was the source of the hunter’s dream. Proven easily by the unmoving lifeless doll and the uncanny same looks as the dream. This...thing had made the dream? But...but...Causin sat next to lamp to write down everything she was seeing here and her questions, before she left for the dream she picked up a hair ornament.

“Welcome home, good hunter. What is it you desire?” The doll asked her ever polite and caring. On a whim she gave the doll the hair ornament to her shock the doll recognized it. “What...what is this? I-I can't remember, not a thing, only...I feel…” She shut her eyes and held it close to her chest. “A yearning...something I've never felt before…” The doll wiped away a tear shocking Causin more. “What's happening to me? Ahh... Tell me hunter, could this be joy? Ahh…” What just happened? Causin had a tear stone, a doll shed neither blood nor tears...the doll had cried...could she bleed too? Causin wasn’t going to find out but now she wondered about the doll.

****

Ludwig’s Holy Blade came down on the man with the odd cross like stick killing him, she shook off the blood best she could and looked toward the large doors before her. There was this way, and two other paths she was picking this one first. The silver haired hunter pushed the doors open as wide as she could and slipped inside, there was some very odd statues, lit candles and more of the well craftsmanship.

The stairs were bloody as was the floor a bit near the top she paused hearing a female voice. “Seek the old blood. Let us pray... let us wish... to partake in communion. Let us partake in communion...and feast upon the old blood. Our thirst for blood satiates us, soothes our fears. Seek the old blood...but beware the frailty of men. Their wills are weak, minds young. The foul beasts will dangle nectar and lure the meek into the depths. Remain wary of the frailty of men. Their wills are weak, minds young. Were it not for fear, death would go unlamented.”

Interesting prayer, was this woman part of the church? Feast on old blood? What did that mean? Blood sure wouldn’t soothe fears and yes she could believe mankind was frail and weak but minds young? Foul beasts dangle nectar...what was that meant to mean?

Causin took a few steps forward only to freeze in shock when the woman suddenly screamed, her body began to change and blood burst from her coating the statue near her. The woman was now a large beast, looking like a wolf with deer antlers. Causin had twice now seen with her own eyes a person becoming a beast...and as she had learned clerics became the worst.

Wait...crap she was turning around. Vicar Amelia now a beast roared and charged at Causin who sidestepped quickly and prepared to fight noticing the once vicar was clutching something, maybe she should focus on that arm? The hunter would just have to try and see.

Vicar Amelia's attacks were hard, Causin was either smashed into the hard floor, knocked back or sent flying up into the air and hitting the ground hard due it either gravity or the former vicar striking her again. With the long arms and claws the hunter had a hard time dodging the blows and swipes. The flame sprayer wasn’t bad against against the former vicar but she found performing her most heavy hard attacks from the Ludwig blade delt the most harm, aiming for the arms made the beast stop now again to roar in pain giving Causin more time to attack. Hitting the knees however...staggered the former vicar giving the hunter a chance for visceral, which she of course took.

Suddenly when the former vicar was covered in her own and Causin’s blood and heavily wounded she backed off and clasped her clawed hands over her chest a light flowed around her...she began to heal. “No!” Causin yelled in shock and fear. She was running low on blood vials if the former vicar could just keeping healing she’d be in trouble. On a whim she threw a small bottle with murky smoking fluid at the former vicar cutting off her healing.

“It worked-” She broke off with a pained cry when the beast leaped at her and landed on her smashing her into the floor, Causin felt some ribs break and crack. Trying to push through the pain she rolled away hastily using a vial. She only six left, if she didn’t finish off the former vicar soon she would lose and be sent back to the cathedral lamp.

Rolling again from more painful hard blows she hoped the rest of her numbing mist could get her through this, those were the only things she had to stop this beast from healing, her heavy blows hadn’t done much. The former vicar caught her while her thoughts kept her busy, a clawed hand slammed down catching her shoulder and drew back violently dragging her along with it. She was hit again by a swipe across her chest then crushed by a clenched fist.

Both arms were broken, her left hand was all but shattered. Her right shoulder was torn apart, all ribs broken...the hunter coughed up blood as she struggled to roll away. She knew there was worse damage to her body, if she could just move away and heal...she managed two vials before the former vicar caught up with her and was forcing her to use more.

In a matter of seconds Causin was out of vials and had used another numbing mist on the former vicar, if she couldn’t heal neither would the beast. The former vicar’s attacks were more desperate now showing she was close to death, Causin herself wasn’t faring much better. The fight could go either way now.

A molotov flew through the air hitting the vicar in the head staggering her, the hunter rushed forward gripping hard into the beast then torn her hand free. More blood splattered on the stone floor as the former vicar shook her head and clawed at the spot the hunter and torn at. 

Causin gave the beast no time to recover from the visceral attack, she swung the mighty heavy blade hard into the knees of the beast and pushed past what her stamina could allow in desperation to end the fight. The former vicar got off one final swipe nearly sending the hunt back to a lamp before her last desperate swing of the holy blade.

Vicar Amelia let out a harsh sound as she fell and like all other powerful beasts the hunter fought before burst before her eyes sending blood everywhere.

Causin breathed hard blood trailing slowly out of her mouth along with a couple of coughs, she limped closer to where the former vicar had fallen spotting a gold pendant. She picked it up and pocketed it. The hunter activated the lamp that appeared, she badly wanted to return to the dream as all her wounds would heal and she could restock her supplies but the skull on the alter where the large blood covered statue was...had an odd glow to it.

“A be-beast skull?” Causin rasped leaning on the alter to keep up right. She reached out to it and found her mind swept away to someplace else. It looked like a study but she could hardly make anything out then she heard a man’s voice. “Master Willem, I've come to bid you farewell.” There was a man sitting in a large rocking chair idly tapping a staff against his hand. “Oh, I know, I know. You think now, to betray me.” Betray? What was she hearing?

The other man replied a negative to those words. “No, but you will never listen. I tell you, I will not forget our adage.” The man, the old man in the rocking chair then spoke words Causin would never forget and would repeat many times once she understood what it meant fully. “...We are born of the blood, made men by the blood, undone by the blood. Our eyes are yet to open...Fear the old blood.” They both spoke the last part together. Fear the old blood.

The young man began to leave the study. “I must take my leave.” He said just before a door closed. The old man in the rocking chair said only a few words, Causin wasn’t certain but she thought he sounded worried. It could just be her of course. “By the gods, fear it, Laurence”

The hunter gasped softly as she found herself back in the Grand Cathedral, she drew her hand back away from the skull. What was that? Thinking back she recalled Alfred saying something about Byrgenwerth and a code that only they knew, fear the old blood...was that it? She wasn’t sure when she would need that but she needed to make a note of this-

Causin fell on the floor unable to keep standing any longer. She was covered in awful painful wounds and bleeding out. She ground her teeth and slowly dragged herself toward the lamp, the Messengers groaned in alarm and reached out to her longing to help but they could not move from the lamp. After great effort and much pain Causin was able to brush the bells of the lamp with her fingers the blue lights lit up around her and took her away to the dream where she would be fully healed.

(Night)

***

The doll was worried deeply for the hunter. The moment she entered the dream the woman and flopped down on top of some the white flowers and drifted off to sleep. Had she been through a tough fight? She must have to be so drained, but that didn’t look comfortable. The doll knew humans need comfort to sleep peacefully. 

The doll spoke to the Messengers in the Bath asking them to search around for soft cloth, wool, silk, needles and thread. The beings happily moved to do as asked while the doll waited, some books in the workshop taught sewing. The doll didn’t go in there while the first hunter was in as he had commanded it, however when he was in the garden the doll snuck in to look around. Once the Messengers returned the doll got to work creating a makeshift bed with pillows and a blanket to go along with it.

The doll was uncertain how much time passed before she finished the bed, she set it out inside the workshop next to the storage box then knelt beside the sleeping hunter. “Good hunter, this is not good for your back, rest inside.” The hunter made a soft sound looking at her with barely open eyes, she did however get up to go inside thinking she would be sleeping on the hard floor only to find the bed. She turned back to the doll standing at the bottom of the stairs with a gentle smile. “Did you...make this?” The doll nodded to her. “Yes good hunter, you need rest on something soft. I asked the little ones for help.” The doll was delighted when the good hunter beamed at her and gave her a bright thank you.

For quite some time the doll had been here in this dream watching hunter after hunter go through this dream. Yes, she was here to help them and she enjoyed it however she had another reason to be here. She was searching for a child. All the hunters allowed themselves to be free of the dream at the end of their hunts, and most didn’t last a next hunt without the dream either killed by beasts, becoming a beast or going drunk on blood and sent away to never return.

This hunter however...the doll wasn’t sure yet why but she was different. Perhaps she had finally found her child, if she resisted Flora that is.

****

“I can’t believe I didn’t notice these two…” Causin muttered her eyes flicking from a window to a door, both had smoking lanterns which meant they were people here still alive warding off beasts. She approached the door and knocked softly. A woman replied but she wasn’t rude or harsh. “Oh, my, what a queer scent…” Huh? “But I'd take it over the stench of blood and beasts any day. What is it, then?” The woman asked curiously. “I'm off during hunts, and besides, this is no place for ladies. Wouldn't want to drag you down too.”

Causin found herself a little confused for a moment until her brain caught what the woman said about “off during hunts” and colored slightly. Alright, so the woman was an escort or prostitute. Still...looking down at the incense she saw it was a little faded, it seemed the other woman had also noticed she was running low and spoke again. “Oh, thank goodness. You're a hunter, aren't you dear?” The silver haired woman nodded. “I am.”

A soft sigh behind the door. “Might you know of a safe place? The night is long, and I’ve very little of the incense left...Please, there must be some nice safe place to run off to?” Causin didn’t even consider the clinic, the woman there wasn’t Iosefka. She didn’t know who that was but her hunter senses didn’t like her. “Oedon Chapel, it isn’t far there is plenty of incense to ward of the beasts there.” The hunter replied. “Oh, thank you dear. Perhaps I’ll see you there! Oh, if you plan to talk with my neighbor he’s a bit of a stubborn fellow and will insist on doing the opposite of whatever you say to spite you.”

Wonderful. “I’ll try to get him to go then...you should be safe getting to the chapel I already cleared the path.” Causin told the other woman as she went over to the window to convince the man to go to Oedon Chapel as well.

***

The hunter had to wonder if the man knew she played him like a violin in getting him to the chapel, she’d told him of the clinic and he came here instead. Heh, he may be a jerk but he got played well. If the woman hadn’t said anything who knows what might have happened though. She didn’t care if he wouldn’t talk with her she just wanted him safe along with the old woman.

Coming up to the lamp she spotting Lily showing her doll to the woman she sent here. The woman smiled kindly and lightly shook the doll’s hand getting a beam from the small girl. “Wow your pretty.” The words slipped out before she even thought them, the woman’s eyes lit up with laughter while Lily openly laughed when Causin colored and clapped a hand over her mouth.

Causin cleared her throat willing away the flush on her face and stepped closer to the pretty seated woman. “Oh, hello dear…” She was grinning up a storm, great she wasn’t going to forget that slip anytime soon was she? “You weren't lying. This is a safe place. Thank you. I am in your debt. I'd like to tender my thanks, but I can't imagine what to offer. All I can give is my blood. But...would you even take a whore's blood?” Well, she was open about that wasn’t she? Thinking back to her last vial of Iosefka’s blood that was really good Causin could think of no reason not to accept this woman’s blood. “I doubt one’s occupation affects the healing of blood.”

The woman merely smiled waving her closer. “Oh, good. Come close, dear. Don't worry, I've done this before.” She laughed softly. Causin soon had a new blood vial along with a pretty little cloth. 

The dream gave her info of the new vial. Blood taken from Arianna. Cathedral Ward woman of pleasure. The sweet blood of Arianna heals, and temporarily speeds stamina recovery. A member of the old Healing Church would know that her blood is similar indeed, to precisely what was once forbidden.

What. Forbidden? Whatever, she cared less what The Healing Church said and did unless it was immoral or unjust. “Arianna huh?” She mused liking the name. “I’m told it’s pretty.” Arianna chirped smirking at the groan her words got little Lily laughed. “Not going to let that go are you? Oh, my name is Causin.” Causin said with a small smile. Arianna shook her head smirk firmly in place. Causin had just gained a new friend and someone to watch over Lily when she wasn’t there.

Arianna seemed to know without Causin saying much, the blonde woman also subtly said she knew the beasts were people and she’d say nothing to anyone about the fate of the poor girl’s father. This left Causin wanting to ask Arianna questions, she sent a look to Lily who seemed to know the look meant no listening and went to the person on the floor who was happy to keep her busy.

“We just met but I know little of the goings on in this city, can you please answer some questions for me?” Causin asked Arianna as she sat cross legged across from her chair. The woman of pleasure saw no harm in it, besides the hunter needed to know something about the church so Lily would stay safe along with herself. 

“From what you saw happen to her father you already know the people are beasts, correct?” Causin stared at her notebooks sadly and nodded. Arianna wondered at the reaction for only a moment, this hunter must be quite kind hearted this situation must hurt her. “Do you know why this is?” It was best to start at the root of things after all.

Causin made a so-so motion. “A fellow hunter told me what happened to Old Yharnam, someone had seen a member of the church put something in the water supplies. Not long after people fell ill then the church comes along with their blood healing.” Causin stopped. “How can blood do such a thing it makes no sense.”

Arianna found that question difficult to answer, while she came from the line the church slaughter long ago she didn’t know everything however she knew enough to give this hunter more questions and perhaps the ability to form answers. “The blood of a Great One.” This answer seemed to not help, the hunter asked her what one was. Oh dear, she hadn’t expected that. Causin reminded her of the nobility of Cainhurst she had thought the woman from the same line but if she didn’t know the Great Ones perhaps she was an outsider. Or...from the line of the few who left Cainhurst and the very city itself.

“The Great Ones to The Healing Church are gods that bless us with blood. However considering people become beasts I don’t believe that is the case. The church grooms people to be blood saints who use their blood to heal others. If one doesn’t get the blood directly they get it from the church’s blood saints.” Arianna explained. “I however do not think the Great Ones are gods and one must wonder if they take blood from these beings by force. After all people are becoming beasts, maybe they aren’t gods but they have power, perhaps have used said power to curse those who partake their blood without permission.”

Causin wrote this down. “Great One blood…” She looked up. “Fear the old blood...that’s what it meant?” She muttered but loud enough to be heard. “Pardon? Fear the old blood?” The hunter looked back down to her notes. “I got into the Grand Cathedral, there was a woman there praying…” Causin spoke it Arianna nodded having heard it before. “She changed before my eyes I was forced to kill her, it...wasn’t easy.” She shut her eyes in pain, Causin hadn’t been hurt by the powerful beasts so harshly before then. “After I brought her down there was a skull, I touched it. I was seeing and hearing something else in a study. A man called Laurence was leaving another man he addressed as Master Willem. Willen started an adage that said, “We are born of the blood, made men by the blood, undone by the blood. Our eyes are yet to open...Fear the old blood.”

Arianna could only stare at the hunter in shock. She had seen memories of another person and found out the code word of Byrgenwerth. “Laurence you said...he founded The Healing Church, he’s long passed however...Willem I couldn’t say no one knows how many of those scholars still live let alone their master.” She watched Causin write this down.

“I don’t think Willem...Master Willem liked the use of the Great One blood. If he said to fear it then…” She looked back to Arianna who was paying her close attention. “I think he didn’t want it used, Laurence said he wouldn’t forget the adage but…” She paused to listen to the cries, screams, snarls and howls. “I don’t think he really did or he would have stopped the use when he realized what it did.”

The woman of pleasure nodded in agreement. “Old Yharnam would have been enough with what you said your fellow hunter told you...I have doubts he ordered the people poisoned perhaps another who followed and respected him did it to help get them going.” There wasn’t a way to know, none were left who would tell honestly. “Very few used it at first. Causin,” The hunter looked at her pausing in her notes. “If you ever see someone dressed in black silks wielding weapons they are a church hunter who violently kill the beasts and those who may turn.”

The silver haired hunter dropped her notebook and pen. “They kill those who haven’t even turned?” She gasped in shock. The blond woman’s jaw locked a moment. “They do, if they decide one is becoming a beast then it is so. Anyone who sees those church hunters quickly sucks up to them in fear they might be killed.” She sighed heavily. “The white dressed church members can fight but normally are doctors who work with people and beasts alike...what is it?” Arianna asked noting Causin’s face fall.

“Sorry...it’s just there was a woman I befriended. She was dressed in white, she kept the door locked so no one could get in that way the people she looked after wouldn’t get sick...maybe she was…” Causin couldn’t finish the sentence

Arianna didn’t ask her to. “I’m unsure I can’t shed much light on anything else, I only know little details after all I am, not a Healing Church member.” Causin nodded. “I understand, I have some more info and more questions but it’s alright. Also...why is your blood forbidden?” The questioned was an odd one to ask but Arianna had no problems answering. “I am descended from the Cainhurst line of nobles, The Healing Church slaughtered all those there as they considered their blood tainted and vile. As such since I am from the line my blood is putrid to them.”

What. The. Heck? “They had… entire people slaughtered?” She questioned once more shocked but also disgusted. Arianna nodded grimly. Causin wasn’t sure what to think about that, she recalled Alfred saying he was a vileblood hunter and telling her about a Byrgenwerth scholar who betrayed his fellows and took forbidden blood the Cainhurst. “Did they...the vilebloods, did they ever do anything?” She lost some color when Arianna shook her head. “They did nothing to the church or the people, they did go after hunters however to get blood dregs for the vileblood queen in hopes one day she would bare a child of blood, a child of a Great One.”

Causin was now lost. “Uh...what?” Oops, Arianna started to explain before her friend got too confused. “Every Great One loses it’s child and then longs for a surrogate. The vileblood queen was hoping with the use of blood dregs she would be blessed with a child of a Great One.”

“Okay...let me get this right here...Great ones can’t have children easily so they impregnate human women? And it works?” The hunter wasn’t quite sure what to make of this when Arianna confirmed that. Causin grew concerned when Arianna couldn’t tell her what Great Ones looked like but she did know they weren’t anywhere close to human in body let alone mind or spirit.

Arianna couldn’t answer many more questions but that was okay, Causin had more information now but lots of questions. She spent some time with both Lily and Arianna before heading back to the dream then going to Old Yharnam again. She wasn’t feeling ready to move forward yet, she needed more echoes, best way right now was helping fellow hunters. Standing next to the lamp she rang her resonet bell and waited.

In just a few seconds she was summoned into another world, Luvin’s world. The man was seated on the ground next to the lamp, he jumped and fell back slightly in shock. “Wha- How did you get here?!”

Now it was Causin’s turn to explain things to one who knew nothing about Yharnam and the workings of the city.


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The Old Yharnam boss battle with Maria's hunter and DarkSan's is also a recorded video. Playlist here : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p0qygSkcQRs&list=PLPdPkbqc-7An9RTqv3PnUZ6kMqPRUnrb7
> 
> DarkSan really made the co-op stuff work well with her fanfic, I'm impressed :D Why can't I come up with this stuff? Cuz I got writers block...right :(
> 
> Found out that when the snatcher grabs the hunter in the way was described in fanfic was the first time DarkSan saw that during her current go through...she didn't know they did that.
> 
> I hope DarkSan won't mind me telling her I found some mistakes in here...I'm sure I missed a couple. I'm not a good editor but I tried. Hopefully she won't get mad when I tell her, but hey enjoy the fanfic :D

Causin lifted her hands to calm her fellow hunter. “Calm down it’s okay! You rang your beckoning bell,” She began and he lifted the blue bell. “yes, that.” She nodded to him before he put it away. “I rang a resonant bell that responds by bringing me to you.” She explained as best she could about how there was other worlds and other hunters, and they could all meet by using the bells; she course couldn’t tell him how it all worked as she didn’t know herself.

“So, uh...Luvin I’m Causin, I’ve already gone through this place in my world I’m willing to help you get through here. If you don’t want that, I can go.” She wasn’t quite sure what he would do here, she had unloaded some confusing information on him and shocked him by appearing; this could go either way with her staying to help or her leaving.

While he thought, she looked him over. His slightly long black hair was just above his shoulders, his bangs covering one eye with a few scars on the right side of his face with slight, dark, red eyes. He’s slightly tan and has slight scruff on his face, though instead of making him look like a ruffian, it matured him and looked good. He was a bit muscular, it was obvious even under the under garb he wore. He seemed to be favoring the hunter axe and blunderbuss. Luvin was slightly confused as to just what was going on. Other worlds? The bells connected hunters to these worlds? He looked at the bell beckoning bell he rang, before rubbing his head.

“How the hell am I supposed to react to information like that?” He questioned, mainly to himself, before looking over at Causin. “So...you’re a hunter as well then.” He commented and she nodded. “Hm, wasn’t aware there were other hunters besides me except Eileen.” He commented, rubbing his chin in thought. He looked Causin over a little, seeing exactly how prepared she was as well as taking her appearance in. Long silvery hair, silver-green eyes that seemed almost unreal to him as well as wearing what looked to be a black hunters outfit. A long black coat to her shins, with what looked to be a black cape over her shoulders, thick black pants with black leather boots and black gloves. “Well, at least you seem prepared for battle.” He commented, before rubbing his head.

“So...you came to help me?” He asked, receiving another nod. “Well, I certainly won’t turn down help. Getting through this place with another hunter will make it a bit more bearable to, at least, live.” He responded with a small smile. Causin nodded. “Yes it would, see,” She pointed to the large doors leading to Old Yharnam. “There’s a hunter named Djura, he’s protecting the beasts. I know it seems odd,” She said quickly noting his shock. “See the beasts...they’re people, changed by...blood. I know that also makes no sense but I hardly understand it all myself.” The silver haired hunter explained. “I’m sure if you just ask to talk to Djura he’ll listen, we just can’t harm the beasts, his friend will help us reach him.” She told him then waited for his reply.

He gave her a considering look. “I’d rather not fight a fellow hunter, you’re sure he’ll listen?” Causin nodded. “He will, he did in my world. Just say you want to talk.” Djura did just as he had in her world, he had Luvin lead to him and explained what happened to Old Yharnam. Luvin hadn’t heard much about the Healing Church much like Causin hadn’t but now he knew never to trust them. Causin helped him reach the powerful beast in the ruined church.

“Before we go in,” The silver haired hunter began hefting her heavy blade onto her shoulder. “This beast’s attacks can poison you, Luvin do you have antidotes?” He blinked and nodded slowly. “Good, take those if you start to feel the poison affecting you. Suchs as...maybe slowing down and feeling sick. If you aren’t quick enough it’ll kill you and send you right back to the lamp.” Thinking of some fire paper, it appeared in her hand. “You’ve got some of these right? This beast, heck lots of them don’t like fire and since it kills them faster and what happened here, who knows how long ago...we can’t blame them for fearing it.”

“Got it, so apply to my weapon and hit it?” He asked wanting to be sure he had this right. “Yes, however know that this thing is fast you...might miss sometimes.” Causin replied pulling the thin sword out of its sheath and applied the fire paper to it lighting it up, in her other hand she held a flame sprayer. “Go on, I can’t enter just yet. As soon as you gain insight run back here and we’ll both fight it, this way if it brings you down you can get the echoes back easily too.” 

He gave her an odd look. “Should I be worried that you’ve thought that through?” Causin huffed. “No, it’s just a simple fact. The closer you are to the entrance when the beast kills you, the sooner and easier it is to recover. I mean its logical.” Luvin merely hummed but had to agree she was right.

The fight didn’t go well the first time, Luvin went down due to poison. Luckily he had more insight to call Causin back and, using a trick she was taught, they were able to speak a password into the bell so only they would meet up. 

The second go at the fight went better, if either of them was poisoned they used an antidote as soon as it happened and rolled out of the way of attacks to use a vial and heal. Causin had Luvin deal the heavy damage while she used her threaded cane, two heavy weapons might have seen it ended faster but the thing was quick, one heavy weapon was hard enough to manage.

A roar sliced the air as the beast finally dropped, burst, and spread blood all over the floor. Luvin was gasping as he took an antidote, he had other wounds too so did Causin. “Go around the statue!” She called as she was sent back to her would. “There’s more antidotes behind it!” Causin hoped Luvin would be alright.

***

“Do you see the open door?” Causin questioned Luvin through her bell. They found they could talk to each other through the bells, because of this Causin was trying to help Luvin get Ludwig’s Holy Blade along with...that other item. She’d share her notes with him once he was able to summon her again.  _ “Ah...yes I see it...why is it open?”  _ Good question, Causin didn’t have an answer though. 

“I’m not sure, it only seems to open after you get through Old Yharnam and talk to Gherman. Okay, what you want to do is first be careful there’s an elevator you want to take it up. There’s a gun man at the top, watch out for him; there’s also a chest so killing him is a good idea…” Causin continued to give him instructions until he got the item needed to get Ludwig’s blade, he got a wandering madness and managed to make his way down to the Workshop.

“What was-” Causin ‘shh’ed him holding a hand up. “I don’t have all the answers okay? Here,” She sat down across from him near the lamp inside the Cathedral Ward and brought out her notebooks. “Everything I have learned and all my questions are in these, feel free to go through them.” Luvin sat with her and began to flick through the book that had information she already knew, then he looked through the items, clothes and weapon book that had all the info on current items both of them had...if he bought certain things anyway. The last notebook was her questions and there was a lot of those.

“How can we begin to make sense of all this?” Luvin asked her, horrified at most of what he read. “Other hunters or Yharnamites willing to talk with us.” Very low chances of the Yharnamites talking however. “That info on Cainhurst and the church hunters came from a woman I met, I think you can meet her too just have to bring down Vicar Amelia...not an easy beast let me tell you.” The silver haired hunter swore she could still feel some of the wounds the beast gave her. Luvin noticed her discomfort and gave an concerned look. “You okay?” He asked, worried about her as he handed the books back to her, she seemed to have remembered something.

Causin nodded. “I’m alright, Vicar Amelia simply isn’t an easy beast to fight.” She looked at him carefully. “How is all your things?” She asked him. “You know, the things the Doll can increase when you have enough blood echoes.” Causin’s were all at twenty. “I’m alright in that regard, though I mainly focused on strength, though I did focus on the other aspects.” He commented, knowing he’d be okay, his strength was the highest of all. 

The silver haired hunter hummed thinking a moment. “I think you should pour the echoes into your health endurance and strength. I know bloodtinge is for guns but I don’t know about anything else just yet.” Causin looked out one of the doors noting it was later then before. “Sorry Luvin I have to go back to my world.” She pointed outside. “As a warning there’s some huge enemies out there, and they hit hard. Bye, good luck!” She called as she shot the silencing blank.

***

Causin felt a little bad for ditching Luvin but she had noticed he was a little stiff while fighting, he needed to practice fighting without her. She couldn’t always help him after all, she’d given him pointers at least...she would just hope for the best. 

The hunter had three paths to take, two were at the right and left of the Grand Cathedral, the other was a door that needed a password. Honestly she was leaning toward checking out the right side of the Grand Cathedral then the left. Going through the password closed door would lead to another area of this city that she wasn’t certain she was ready for.

Turned out she wasn’t ready to take on two hunters that were off to the right of the Grand Cathedral. They hadn’t wanted to talk only to bring her down, one hunter hadn’t been bad but the other...he hardly let her get close and just kept shooting her. By the time Causin finally managed to end both of them she had very few vials left.

Knocking on the doors nearby lead to nothing, the people inside only said to bless them with blood. Before she could follow a path down some stairs she found a note warning her of several snippers and took a high road instead only to come across a very tall thin man wearing a clock carrying a bloody bag.

“Ah!-” The hunter pitched forward slightly when the thing held out a hand and pulled her with some kind of force, Causin managed to move back a bit before she was punched but she wasn’t fast enough to avoid the grab. It merely held her shoulder and lifted her up, she had no idea what it did really but pain flew through her body. Causin thought she felt it throw her down then continue holding her up and doing more damage but she already couldn’t move.

Finally it dropped her allowing her to fade to the dream. However as she came to Causin found it wasn’t to the dream. In fact her vision was blurry and she couldn’t focus, for a moment she saw the thing that attacked her walking away and shutting a cell door behind it. Causin shook her head a little and stood up, the dream sent her the name of the place. Hypogean Gaol.

Had...that thing taker her here? Why? She pushed and pulled the door finding it unlocked. “What?” This place was in awful condition. Some parts of the walls were crumbling, the bars of the cell, correction cells were broken, bent, rusted and old enough so that anyone kept here could easily just bust the bars to escape. She switched her gun for the hunter torch for picked up at Old Yharnam, it was rather dark here...and dusty,or perhaps it was ash.

Carefully she stepped out of the cell it was completely silent save for what might have been a distant moan...and perhaps singing? The hunter wasn’t sure, focusing she heard nothing. Had she just been hearing things? She found more crumbling parts of the building, some jars that were empty signifying just how long they had been there. She spotted some mirrors but they were covers with cloth and tied to stay that way. She saw some things that looked like they had once been lights and-

The hunter froze in front a chair, a dead body rested on it with a cage on its head. There were cuffs on its wrists ankles and neck, there was some tattered remains of a shirt and trousers. By the cuffs she knew this person hadn’t wanted to be here, maybe this person had been a slave? Ugh, Causin found salivary disgusting, she didn’t know if her guess was correct or not but this sight alone gave someone pause both in confusion and some slight fear.

Someone was still tending to this place, she knew because the lanterns on the walls were lit, they didn’t give off much light but it told her some people were still here. Were they sane? She’d find out. The silver haired hunter walked through a gaping hole in some of the cell bars, she found a note not too far from a corpse. “‘Madmen toil surreptitiously in rituals to becon the moon. Uncover their secrets.”’ That gave her little answers about this place, but her guess was something nasty was going on here in this place. 

“Pfft yeah Causin something nasty is going on here!” She snapped at herself. “What gave it away first? The thing that grabbed you, the rundown building, the dead person on the chair with a cage on their head or the bloody note?!” What a foolish thing to think after what she’d seen so far! Honestly most of what happened here in Yharnam point blank was nasty, she might as well just expect it from now on!

As she made her way down a flight of stairs she heard a woman’s voice shaking, scared and close to tears. “Oh, merciful Gods, help me...In the name of the Healing Church, please cleanse us of this horrible dream…” There was some soft whimpering. Causin carefully walked down another flight of stairs ignoring the covered mirrors, odd lights, and torn up floor. She found a woman garbed in a black dress kneeling down beside the stairs shaking and praying.

Causin stepped closer to her and spoke a soft gently. “Are you hurt?” The woman twitched glancing over her shoulder and lot out a breath she’d been holding. “Ahh, by your garb...the Healing Church…” What? Oh...right, she was wearing the Black Church Garb chest piece, it had looked good with her Yharnam Hunter gloves and trousers. It also had poison resistance. Now that she looked the woman was wearing the full Black Church Garb.

“You’ve come to save me...Ahh! Thank you, dear saint! I have no words to express my relief...You could take this, at least.” The woman handed her a madman’s skull, the very item she could gain insight from. “It is sure to please an upstanding member of the church like you. Ahh, thank you so much. Dear gods…” The hunter wasn’t part of the church, she merely liked how this outfit mix looked and the defences she got from it. She’d correct the woman once she was safe.

Wait… “Just how did you end up here?” This didn’t seem the best place to hide from the hunt. The woman seemed pleased she was asking. “Thank you so much.” For caring? “I was seized by a hulking brute in the Cathedral Ward and locked up here.” What. That thing was taking anyone it could get a hold of then, Causin made a note to go back and slaughter it and not just to get her echoes back. 

“There were many others, but they’ve been taken away...And I’ve heard moans, echoing in the distance, ever since…” The woman took on a slightly fearful serious expression. “So, the hunt is on tonight?” Causin nodded, it was rather impossible to miss the sounds of the beats and see them walking the streets.

The church woman sighed. “Then the streets are perilous...And every door will be shut tight...Perhaps it isn’t my place to ask, but...Do you know somewhere that might take me in?” The hunter didn’t even pause to think about it. “Oedon Chapel.” She replied then felt her hunter senses scream, had she just made a mistake? “Oh, thank you so much. I’ll set out as soon as I can. I pray for success on your hunt. Kind Hunter…” Her senses may have screamed but Causin was still worried, nonetheless she left the woman to her own devices and started back to the stairs noting one mirror so far wasn’t covered but merely cracked badly.

The hunter found another one of those small beats that drop blood shards for weapons, she nearly got caught by one of those large men...or beast. As soon as it had walked off a little she made her way up some more stairs and jolted. There was some very disturbing inhuman looking statues along with another body in a chair, she tried hard to ignore how small said body looked. She also found a note on the floor. “‘Nightmareish rituals crave a newborn. Find one, and silcane its harrowing cry.”’ That didn’t sound too good, Causin did her best to put this place out of her mind as she flicked on the lamp and got out of there. Those large beasts/men with the bloody bags were strong, she couldn’t take them on right now. She’d return later.

~~*~~

Lily looked up from Airanna’s skirt which she had been petting having found the silk fabric to be very soft, she heard the click of footsteps and saw a woman wearing a black dress come into the chapel. “Arianna look,” The pretty woman turned her head slightly and peeked over the railing. 

A woman of the Healing Church, Causin had found one? She appeared to be greeting her narrow minded neighbor who scoffed at her then ignored her. That seemed to confused the young woman of the church, the snapish old woman...well she snapped at her.

Arianna pressed her lips into a line as the woman made her way to where she and Lily were, she looked at the person on the floor then turned toward her and the child. “Hello there young one.” Lily sent her a cheerful greeting then got back to petting Airanna’s skirt making the woman’s lips twitch. The woman of the church frowned at her eyes narrowing before she went off to the corner opposite of her neighbor.

Only a few minutes later did Causin appear next to the lamp, she smiled at Lily when the girl waved one hand still at Arianna’s skirt then she turned her silvery gaze to the church woman in the back. Causin held back a grin as the woman of the church stood quickly upon seeing her and clasped her hands together in prayer. She should really say she wasn’t from the church. 

“Oh, brave hunter. You’re alive.” How had she gotten back here? Causin had used the lamp...perhaps she’d found a passage the hunter didn’t bother to find. “Thank you very much.” She performed a little bow, putting her hands together and bowing at the waist. “The town is in disarray, but there are still people here. Together, we await the help of the Healing Church.” Causin doubted they would be doing anything but held her tongue.

“I cannot begin to express my gratitude to you. The only thing I can offer...Is my own lowly blood. If it would suffice…” She seemed uncertain of saying this. Causin thought about it, she had used Arianna’s blood vial a while back she’d been meaning to get another but since the church woman was offering she’d accept. “I certainly won’t mind some. Are you positive?” This brightened the woman up. “Yes, of course. Come in close...Now...Take my blood…” The blood vial was a little different from Arianna’s, mostly by the cloth on it, it was simple mostly white with some black tied with a thin black string. 

The dream gave her some information on it. Blood taken from Adella, nun of the Healing Church. Heals an amount of wounds, then continues to gradually heal for a time. The Healing Church nuns are chosen for their merit as vessels for blood, and groomed as Blood Saints. The mere chance of being treated with their blood lends legitimacy to the Healing Church and communion.

Well...it wasn’t bad but Arianna’s blood healed her and helped her recover stamina for a while, it did both so she found it more handy. “Oh, what is your name? Mine is Causin.” She couldn’t call her the church woman after all. “Oh, Adella.” Adella, simple but pretty. While she walked away from Adella Causin subtly used the vial recalling Iosefka refusing to give her more than one vial at a time, people would only give so much blood after all.

Arianna gave her a pretty gentle smile while she let Lily idly play with one of her hands. “Oh, hello. The whole town’s turned, has it? Quite a big family now, aren’t we? Though I’m afraid I seem to be the black sheep…” She gave a soft laugh showing she honestly didn’t care what people thought of her, she knew who and what she was and had no problem with it. It was one of the many things Causin liked about her. “Back for my blood, I presume? Or perhaps a chat?” The hunter smiled. “Both.” The woman of pleasure nodded waving her closer with her free hand ensuring Lily wasn’t looking. “Oh, good. Come close, dear. I’m always happy to help.” Causin was going to try and save this vial-and what was that? Adella had been watching her talk to Arianna and she swore the woman didn’t look happy seeing her take blood from her friend. Her senses screamed again in warning. She would certainly save this blood vial, she had a feeling nothing good would come of taking more where Adella could see.

The person on the floor was happy to see her and more happy she had brought another sane person here. “Ahh, the hunter. Alive and well, at that! Another one you sent made it here safe and sound. This place is a heaven now, for so many. Thanks to you. I’m...overjoyed, really. That you’d even give me the time o’ day!” 

That suggested they got ignored often outside the hunt. “I don’t suppose there’s anybody out there worth savin’ anymore. But you did all ya could, and so many owe you so much. Amazing, really. Not ‘cause you’re a hunter, but because you’re you.” They let out a little slightly crazed laugh she had gotten used to. “Makes me think, once dawn breaks, maybe I can just, you know, start over. Makes it easier to bear all o’ this, you see? You’ve made life easier. Thank you.” Causin wished them the best.

As the hunter was walking out of the chapel the narrow minded man waved at her sharply. Great more nuggets of advice that she had to take the opposite of what he said. “I’ll spare you one nugget of advice. Beware the lady of the night.” What? This was about Arianna? “I can see it in her eyes. She deeply resents the young saint. She hears people whisper. She knows what people think of her. Yes, she despises the saint for having what she doesn’t. Bloody wench, they shoulda moved her on ages ago.” Causin frowned going back to one of the exits. Arianna cared little for the thoughts of others about her, she could see that and her hunter senses didn’t scream around her. Adella...her hunter senses didn’t like the woman, she was the one who could be a problem. Not Arianna.

Before Causin could walk too far she saw a light in a window and caught the scent of something baking over the smell of blood beasts, sickness and death. “Hello?” She called softly tapping the window once she got over the stone railing. “Shove off outsider, I’m getting ready for the morning.” A baker? “And if I’m willing to pay?” The man paused. “How much we talkin?” Causin grinned beginning to barter.

Back inside the chapel just too far for Causin’s hearing Adella had moved from her spot and gone over to Arianna and Lily. She didn’t understand why the hunter wanted the whore’s blood more than her own, she was of the Healing Church! This...this woman spread her legs for coin and handed out her blood disgustingly! Her blood itself was putrid! Perhaps she could talk to the hunter and she’d stop being near the woman here, the child needed to be away from her as well before she gave the girl ideas to be like her.

“Hello again young one.” Lily looked up from her book having packed up a few to help pass time. “Hi, Causin saved you? She did me as well after daddy-” Arianna cleared her throat making Lily stop and recall the time Arianna told her not to talk about what happened to her father. Lily didn’t fully understand why she couldn’t talk about it but Causin agreed with Arianna so she wouldn’t say.

Adella sent Arianna a sharp look. “Mind your own business, I was talking to this child.” Arianna met her gaze evenly not at all worried. “I think you’ll find it is, while Causin hunts I look after the girl.” Adella didn’t look like a fighter but that meant nothing, she could still do harm now...or report later and put Lily in worse danger. It was only rumors but Arianna didn’t want confirmation about what happened to children during the hunt.

Was Causin the girl’s mother? The hunter’s hair was silver and the girl’s hair blond...perhaps the color came from her father? Nonetheless there was nothing to fear from her! “I have no ill intent, do not speak as though I do.” How dare this whore even suggest such a thing! “I’m certain many of your fellows have said something the same before killing a man, woman or even a child they decided had this sickness.” Lily froze at Arianna words and ducked around the other side of her chair. Arianna hadn’t wanted to warn lily this way but there wasn’t many other options. 

The Healing Church nun bristled, those people had the scourge, they needed to be taken care of before they changed! They encouraged people to pray to their Lord Oedon to save them from the scrooge but so many did not and had to dealt with before they harmed others and spread their sickness! The church didn’t murder and certainly not children! “How dare you say such a thing!” She yelled drawing a hand to slap the whore for her words.

The dark haired woman of the church stumbled as her wrist was caught and yanked back. “Brave hunter!” She gasped in shock then froze at the icy glare she was getting. “I highly suggest you stay in that corner over there if you can’t get along with Arianna, we’re already dealing with the beasts and people going insane and attacking us. We cannot be fighting each other.” Causin let Adella go and pointed down the stairs to the corner. The nun hurried off wanting to be away from the icy glare.

“Alright, I only caught the end of that, what happened?” Arianna and Lily both explained the conversation that occurred, then both women had to tell Lily the little they knew about what the church did to people and why she couldn’t tell anyone about her father. “Off of grim topics I come with food.” Arianna and Lily both perked up as she lifted a woven basket full of freshly baked bread. 

Arianna took three pieces while Lily took two, Causin then went around the chapel offering the bread. The old woman tried to say she stole it but Causin wasn’t going to just take that and offered to escort her over to the house across the street where she bought the bread from. The old woman grumbled something but did take some bread. She had no other problems and pointedly ignored Adella’s pout, seemed she thought her side would be taken not Arianna’s.

With the people in the chapel enjoying the fresh bread along with Causin herself she decided to take a short break from the hunt. Once she ate her share of bread Causin sat beside Arianna’s chair and rested her head of the woman’s knee, she all but purred feeling Arianna gently run her fingers through her hair. Lily giggled and snuggled close to her liking the idea of a nap with her two new favorite people. It would just be a short break, Causin felt she earned one by now.

***

After a two hour nap the silver haired hunter went back out into the hunt, she didn’t really want to but it had to be done. Before she had left Arianna had spotted her locket and asked her to wait, after looking it over Arianna told her it was from Castle Cainhust and that she shouldn’t have it out where Adella could see it. This gave both of them the thought however that Causin was related to some nobles of Cainhurst, Causin didn’t really mind, if anything she thought it was that she and Arianna could be related. The woman had only grinned at her and waved for her to get back to her hunt. Causin wanted to find Cainhurst, just to see the place. Although if what Alfred said was true one person was still alive there and held sanity. She’d have to make certain she got there first, Alfred might just kill them.

She did go back and kill that bag wielding beast of a man called Snatcher, it hadn’t been easy because of how fast he was and how hard he hit, back she got her echoes back and hopefully spared a few people from getting caught at least for a while. The hunter did take out the snipers dropping on them from above, but she didn’t investigate the area due to the two large beasts holding axes, Executioners. She’d come back here at the later date when she was stronger. To the left of the Grand Cathedral she went.

On the way the hunter noticed a good deal of overgrowth on parts of the Grand Cathedral, many of those mourning, screaming, praying statutes, some holding lit and unlit candles. There was some bare dead looking trees growing out of stone, she gathered there was soil there somewhere or things just worked differently here. Fog floated idly around her as she walked sending an eerie feeling into her that she tried to ignore, she found a dead body, what looked to be someone from the church. There was a little container on them, when the hunter picked it up she nearly dropped it. There was a bloodshot eye inside it.

When the dream gave her information on it, she wished it had not. Material used in a Holy Chalice rite.

An exquisite eyeball removed quickly after death, or perhaps even before. Used to unlock the seal of the old labyrinth hintertombs.

Disgust and confusion swept through her. Why take eyes from the dead...or, she gulped, or the living? She wondered about the chalice part, she had gotten one from the beast in Old Yharnam but hadn’t really looked it over yet, and old labyrinth hintertombs? That she didn’t think she’d heard about yet. Well...perhaps that was what Alfred was talking about with the Healing Church’s holy medium. Holy medium...riiiight and Yharnam wasn’t a cursed city.

Walking down a short staircase she was standing on dirt, and very dry dying plant life. There were a couple more statues, headstones, dead bare trees and more of those jagged rocks said trees were growing from. She found another corpse that held three bold hunter marks. She had needed more, this was a good find.

Following the path of dead plant life and the jagged rocks and trees she found what looked like a cave, above it was a faded sign reading, Hemwick. It was hard to make out but she could read it, everything over here looked so overgrown, dead and showed much passage of take and lack of care. Taking a wary sniff the hunter frowned, she swore there was a faint hint of smoke, fire and...was that ash? She caught gunpowder too. How odd, the scent of beasts, blood, sickness and death wasn’t really there. Then again she wasn’t fully in the cave yet.

Taking a breath the hunter started her way through the cave, dead plant life, headstones, the jagged rock walls and lamps. Someone had taken the time to light these but the hunter had to wonder about it, so much was overgrown and destroyed in ruins, it took time to destroy a building or for it to fall apart due to time, overgrowth took time as well right along with said plant life dying. Perhaps...the curse in this city didn’t just touch the people but the buildings and plants and animals as well.

The hunter spotted an open forest like around ahead, same dead or dying plants, bare dead trees and headstones. However what stopped her a moment was the dog walking away from her having not seen or heard her yet, the dream called it Hunting Dog. It was all black, either having no fur or thin, wrapped in bandages and...spike looking things were in its body. How...disgusting and awful! How did it happen or who did it and why?! No perhaps she was better off not knowing.

A shot went off, her bullet catching the dog making it fall, it recovered quickly and ran at her. Causin dodged to the side as it snarled trying to jump and bite twice, she knew how these things worked by now and almost never got caught. Three quick strikes from the threaded cane brought it down, after some careful steps and looking around Causin saw there was snipers all over this place along with a few of the dogs-

A crimson light appeared along with what looked to be blood and maybe dark oil as some eerie disgusting creepy tall creature with a sickle came out of it, Mad One . It let out a screech when it spotted her and ran toward her. Causin jolted and switched weapons. She sheathed her Ludwig sword, lifting the now heavy blade and slamming it onto the...thing before it had a chance to slice at her. She did this until her stamina ran out then quickly withdrew gasping as the thing started a long painful looking combo that very likely would have sent her straight back to the lamp.

Drawing back for her powerful thrust attack, she hit the thing perfectly as it had run right at her pointed sheathed sword. It let out another harsh sound as it collapsed and faded away. Causin blinked and shook her head, what was that thing and how had it just...just appeared?! The Dream whispered insight, the insight she had. It was gained from seeing the impossible or...what shouldn’t be. Focusing to check her count she had twenty...it...it couldn’t because of the insight could it? The dream said insight but...still that was confusing.

The silver haired hunter did her best to put the thought out of her mind after writing it down in a notebook as she worked on clearing out this area of gunmen, dogs and those...things. She picked up Bone Marrow Ash, the dream gave her information on it. Additional medium that strengthens Quicksilver Bullets. According to the workshop, this is a special bone marrow ash collected from Hemwick Charnel Lane. Invaluable to hunters with weak bloodtinge who require the use of stronger firearms.

Hemwick...Charnel lane? Was that the full name of this place? Causin knew what this place might be, she had read about Charnel Houses and Charnel Grounds before but she found nothing to prove that’s what this place was. There weren’t any dead bodies hanging up on posts or any on the ground tethered to a post, certainly no skeletons. Perhaps this was merely a path that lead to the Charnel House or Ground.

She explored the small spot a bit more, getting shot a few times and a couple dogs got a lucky bit onto her. One of those...things had even hit her too and it had left her having to use two blood vials to heal her shredded arm. The hunter picked up more bone marrow ash, a few twin blood stone shards and singles, thick coldblood and quite a lot of bullets from the men she killed. She did have a close call with one gun man near some oil urns, luckily she had spotted them and moved just has the shot went off. She only really got burned but it had been too close to sending her back to the lamp.

Finally Causin came to a wooden gate that she pushed open, stepped forward a murder of crows took off. However her focus was on the lamp she quickly lit and went back to the dream. She had some echoes for the Doll to turn to new skills and power for her. Causin had a feeling this place might give her a little bit of trouble, it was best to prepare.


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Last chapter my friends, DarkSan's walkthrough might be further along but typing takes more time than playing a game. Plus she said she hasn't been doing much writing now that she got that idea for the voice thing typing for her. She may or may not write more of this before she gets that. Up to her really, she's giving it a lot of thought.
> 
> To anyone wondering about the ending there with that hunter...he's a lore dude, go back to the first chapter and check that link. DarkSan has all the lore she found on her DA and I linked it.
> 
> This is from DarkSan: "I wrote my hunter saving both little girls because what happens to them is very...ugh. Its a fanfic, if I wish to change their fate I will and have."
> 
> I'm with DarkSan when it comes to the two girls, poor kids. Its just a game but still.
> 
> Hope you enjoy the chapter my friends! :D

The hunter hadn’t gained very much with the echoes she had, she only increased some of her abilities. The trip to the dream had been worth it all the same though, she had decided to make a quick trip back to Central Yharnam. She took to going back after every large beast she killed to check on Gilbert and see if she could find Lily’s sister. Gilbert sadly was getting worse, Causin had only just started learning about herbal medicine and doubted she could help him, to give him a small comfort she stayed a while and talked to him, she could tell the gesture touched him.

Causin went back to the dream and used the Great Bridge lamp as it was closer to Lily’s house and risked less harm going this way, her weapon was stronger and so was she those scourge beasts didn’t stand a chance now. They still managed to get her a few times but she didn’t have to use that cheap door trick so she considered herself improved and stronger. Taking down other beasts wasn’t much trouble either, the brick troll went down under two swings.

Upon reaching the house Causin noticed the window was closed and locked again, surely this meant...She knocked at the bars on the window lightly. “Hello?” She called softly almost not daring to hope. A young voice replied to her, though a little older than Lily. “Oh, you haven’t by any chance...seen my little sister, have you? I told her to look after the house, but she’s run off somewhere. She’s still quite small, and wears a big white ribbon. Have you seen her out there anywhere?” The hunter nodded. “I took her to Oedon Chapel, it is far safer there and has an immense supply of incense.”

The girl went silent for a moment. “I take it then...papa isn’t going to return from the hunt and mama is...gone as well?” Causin winced letting out a sigh. “I’m sorry...there wasn’t anything I could do. I can lead you to Oedon Chapel, I have a friend there looking out for Lily while I hunt.” The girl sniffed a bit and let out a harsh breath. “I’ll be just a moment, I...need to gather some things.” If not supplies and the like but also gain composure, she had to be strong for her sister.

~~*~~

“Lily!” The little girl looked up and dropped her doll in favor of running to her sister who was doing the same. The two girls hugged each other tightly not bothering to hold back tears, the elder sister tried but failed. “It’s wonderful that you found her sister.” Arianna gave Causin a smile who nodded. “I’ve been checking the house and its surroundings every few hours, I was about to go into Hemwick when I found her.” She watched the girls with a warm smile, Arianna was doing the same. “As a warning,” The hunter kept a smile on her face as did her friend, they couldn’t distress the girls. “Hemwick...isn’t going to be a nice looking place. It is in use of the Healing Church.” Mention of that place was enough for Causin, she hadn’t heard good things so far after all.

“Causin,” Lily tugged her sleeve, her sister holding her hand. “Yes dear?” She pointed off to where Adella was sitting in the far corner. “She keeps glaring at Arianna and...giving me funny looks. She’s scary.” The hunter frowned, Adella was scaring Lily and glaring at her friend. “Please dear, don’t worry so.” Arianna said urging her to relax a little. “The woman isn’t….unhinged enough to do anything, not as of yet. I can look after myself and the little ones.” The older girl peeked back getting a tiny look at Adella then she looked to Causin. “Miss hunter I don’t like the look of her.” She hugged her sister closer.

Honestly Causin didn’t either, her hunter senses screamed around Adella. “I’ll stick around for a while, I need a break anyway.” When a shudder went through her due to the memory of that place the bag carrying beasts took her to Arianna said nothing, only waved the girls closer so they could go through the bag the elder sister had. 

Leah, she said her name was had gathered up some leftovers from dinner a night ago, a large loaf of bread, a crocheted beige blanket, a couple of books and a few toys. “The nights can last a long time,” Leah stated. “I figured it would be a good idea to have some food, books and a blanket.” When Arianna nodded and muttered about wishing she had grabbed some of her knitting to pass the time, Causin offered to go pick it up for her. Arianna smiled that pretty smile of hers and passed Causin her house key.

Causin didn’t know how long she stayed in the chapel, but she enjoyed spending time with the girls and Arianna, she felt they kept her sane in all the madness that just oozes from this city. The person that asked her to bring people there was happy to be included in the little games and conversation and even asked Causin once the night was over if they could be friends. She had smiled and shook their hand, the beam she got was quite something. This person looked a bit scary and was a touch mad but fairly harmless from what she had seen.

However when it came time to go Airanna promised to keep the girls safe and the kind person did as well, they weren’t sure how much they could do but the thought counted. If anything they could raise an alarm. Honestly however...the hunter didn’t want to go back out to the hunt but she didn’t have much a choice, this hunt...this city itself was a huge mystery and she loved to solve those.

Upon going back to the dream to reach Hemwick easier she paused to talk with the doll. “Hello, I was wondering how much do you know about Yharnam...such as the church?” She asked truly wondering how much the doll knew.

The tall lovely doll blinked and then answered. “Hunters have told me about the church, about the gods and their love. But...do the gods love their creations?” Causin stilled, where had that come from? The doll sounded quite curious and confused. “I am a doll, created by you humans Would you ever think to love me? Of course...I do love you. Isn’t that how you’ve made me?” Urk. That...wasn’t really an answer and she asked her own question too but… “You...aren’t just an object though...or have I misunderstood what you said?” The doll gazed her, the light in the doll’s eyes told her she might be missing something here but that was all, the doll said no more.

***

Insane laughter rang from down below, odd groans, screams. There was a lot of smoke, so much so Causin choked on it and had to crouch down and cover her face. The smells were bad too, there wasn’t much sickness here but death? She could smell the death and it smelled like it was rotting, the scent of blood was nothing knew but it had...a slight difference here she couldn’t place. Not only that the smell was nauseating powerful nearly making her sick. 

The scent of fire wasn’t a shocker, she could see some fires burning, there was a lot of smoke too. There wasn’t any ash, that made her wonder what was burning, she had a feeling she would regret this but she took a deeper breath through her nose and focused all her hunter senses. Wait, the dream informed her this was Hemwick Charnel Lane! That meant that!-

Causin turned away from the lamp and threw up the little bit of food Leah and lily had shared with her. The Messengers groaned loudly and reached for her, she rested her hand back on the lamp letting herself be taken back to the dream.

The doll lifted her head from where she had been tenderly been caring for some of the flowers when the good hunter came back, oh, the good hunter didn’t look too well- The doll was quickly at the good hunter’s side kneeling down to hold her after she was quite violently sick on the path. The Little Ones around the dream moaned and groaned in alarm not liking to see a hunter in such distress. The doll didn’t like it much herself but could do little more than hug the good hunter as she began to cry and failed horribly at trying to control herself.

The good hunter was sick a few more times, the doll managed to make sense of a few words through the hysterical tears and gasping. “Hemwick, Charnel Lane, fire, smoke, death, awful smell, Yharnam and insane.” Her dear good hunter, there was only so much she could do for her. “Oh good hunter, I am here. I shall never be gone, please good hunter try to calm.” She then began to hum a lullaby, one if Causin had been more aware would have recognized from the music box Lily gave her, only the doll knew the whole tune.

****

“I’m alright now...everything just, crashed into me.” Causin smiled at the doll as she mothered her. “I’m...bothered that it happened now, I don’t think I’ve even really scratched the surface of Yharnam and some smells got to me?” She honestly couldn’t believe that was what did her in.

“Good hunter, you opened your senses fully and took a very deep breath. It was an overload.” Causin blinked. “Oh…” That explained it. “I guess I need to practice with that more so it doesn't happen again.” The doll nodded in agreement, seeing the good hunter like that had been concerning. “Please good hunter, be careful.” Causin nodded heading back to Hemwick. The doll was still worried but now she had higher hopes for this hunter, her senses were so sharp and strong, not many had it like that. Still...if she couldn’t manage it, the doll hoped the good hunter at least woke in Yharnam without the dream.

~~*~~

The smell was still powerful but without her senses making it worse, the scent of burning flesh wasn’t as bad. Still awful but now Causin could handle it, she just had to breath slowly or else...she may be sick again. Looking down over a broken fence she...blinked, cocked her head then made a sound.

She could see women down below, they were the source of...all that noise. However, the huge collection of headstones that a statue was on top of caught her attention. She couldn’t really make it out from where she was, she started he way down the hill, the women hadn’t seen her yet but they really didn’t seem sane by how they moved around. The insane laughter they gave off was a no brainer as well. Causin began her fight through Hemwick.

The hunter had picked up bone marrow ash, bloodshot eyeballs, madman’s knowledge, thick coldblood, cold blood dew, twin bloodstone shards, blood stone shards, molotovs...er they looked like em anyway but were different. Pebbles, blood gems and she picked up another one of those rune things. The hunter was now standing at the top of a staircase looking around. There were dead bodies wrapped in cloth around the floor, in piles and hanging from the ceiling and walls.

It made sense to do so outside where the bodies were tired to tall poles so the crows could pick them clean but in here? This had to be the Charnel House, why were bodies hanging in here and why cover them up? Causin wondered about the beds too, how anyone could have slept in the Charnel House was beyond her but she supposed they just got used to it.

With a sigh she started her way down the stairs wondering what kind of beast was waiting for her. “Um…” Nothing was here but dead bodies, the building also was worse on inside than the outside. There was some overgrowth out there and damage but it was far worse inside. There was more bodies in here as well, a lot more. Either stored on shelves along the walls, on the floor, strapped...to beds or hanging from the ceiling.

The only thing about the place that looked different was the statue of a woman, her hands hovering over the body of a man and two other statues at her sides. Glancing around the other statues looked...less pleasing to the eyes much like that big one back near the entrance to the lane. The hunter moved to get a better look and jerked back as another one of those things started to come out of the floor and she gained insight, her hunter senses whispered to her and she turned seeing a red light moving around behind her in the corner.

She ran over and slammed the Ludwig blade down onto the spot. As the woman appeared the dream gave her information. The Witch of Hemwick. A witch? Not what she was expecting to be honest...heck the witch was a little disturbing, she was covered in eyes and in ragged clothing. The lantern she held was also covered in eyes and she held...some wooden item in her other hand. Causin got off only three hits before the witch let out a harsh loud sound and vanished. What.

The hunter switched to her threaded cane, she lashed it to the side to make it change to whip form and began to run around the room avoiding that...thing as she searched for the witch. The hunter spotted a burst of red near one end of the odd ruined bridge in the room, quickly she dodged the thing trying to swing a sickle at her and gave a strong swing of her threaded cane at the witch, she switched to cane form to get off faster hits before the witch vanished again. Alright, the witch was going to run around the room and summon those things. Causin would avoid them and focus on the witch.

Her plan worked and she brought down the witch, however she quickly realized there was another witch in the room when she appeared and smacked her with that wooden thing. The fight was a bit annoying, the witch vanished like the other one did but now there were three of those things in the room. To Causin’s shock the other witch was revived after a few minutes, not that it mattered much. A couple blows from the Ludwig blade had her down again. 

The silver haired hunter raced around the room trying to kill the other witch before she brought the other back again, the great sword made it take a little longer but not by much. Causin had made sure to be stronger before she moved to this area, she and her weapons were much improved. Finally with a few finally swings of the great sword the witch fell down with a long loud scream, the hunter was forced to move away the things hadn’t fell with her. When she gained the echos from her foes and some bloodshot eyeballs the things fell with screeches.

Panting a little Causin lit the lamp and got to take a closer look at the statues, they were quite different from each other, those odd ones also didn’t look as old as the one with the man and woman. The hunter took a seat beside the lamp and began writing down how the lane looked, the enemies she came across, the witches and her questions. “Bah, I have more questions than anything else here.” She muttered frustrated.

The hunter moved to an open doorway, she went down a small flight of stairs and pushed open a door- “Oh…” A dead hunter was tied to a chair, blood was on the floor around the chair and over the hunter’s front. It looked like the blood came from the face- Causin shut her eyes in pain and disgust as she recalled the information on the bloodshot eyeballs how the witches looked. Opening her eyes again she saw something in the hunter’s coat. “Sorry my fellow.” She whispered as she took the item. Rune Workshop Tool.

Oh! Perhaps with this she could start using those runes she’d been picking up. The dream gave her information on the tool. Runesmith Caryll, student of Byrgenwerth, transcribed the inhuman utterings of the Great Ones into what are now called Caryll Runes. The hunter Who retrieves this workshop tool can etch Caryll Runes into the mind to attain their wondrous strength. Provost Willem would have been proud of Caryll's runes, as they do not rely upon blood in any measure. No blood? Well no wonder Willem would have liked the Runes, he did say fear the old blood.

Causin found herself lost and confused for a while after she left Hemwick, she had no idea where to go next. It took a lot of wandering around but she finally found a large closed door, a man’s voice called out, “The Password…” However he didn’t seem too sane by how he kept repeating the words and that he had to close the door, and the mix of crying and laughing. “Fear the old blood.” Causin spoke, she’d read a note about the password and Arianna had mentioned it too. The door opened but she didn’t move.

The man she had heard appeared to be tipping over, she moved to help him only to end up catching his skull that she knew as madman’s knowledge. She flinched and stepped back from the dead body...it had clearly been here for some time given that he was only bones but...how had he let her in?

A flight of stairs later the hunter found herself in some place called the Forbidden Woods. Wonderful, there was always a reason a place was forbidden and she had a feeling she’d would be finding out why it was.

Causin found herself a little confused as she fought her way through the area. It looked like there was just a small village of a sort here or at least there had been before the hunt started. She came across the same kind of...beasts she had in Central Yharnam the only difference she was getting was the woods and...the very strange headstones. The lanterns were also bothering her since they appeared to be bird cages. Ugh.

She picked up a lot of twin blood shards but didn’t really need them, she had to find blood stone chunks for her weapons. Spotting a house with an incense lantern she went over and knocked. “...Oh, a hunter of beasts, are you? Glory be. You know not the value you possess...But, more's the pity...The hours of the night are many, and the beasts more than I can count. A veritable hunt unending! Not even death offers solace, and the blood imbibes you.” The blood imbibed her? That...was a little concerning, she wasn’t turning into a beast was she? 

They continued to talk. “Ha, a most fightful fate, oh my. But I'm willing to you you a kindness. Step lightly round to the right of the great cathedral, and seek an ancient, shrouded church...The gift of the godhead will grant you strength...Yes, I'm unquestionably certain, heheh…” He passed her something called a Tonsil Stone.

The dream gave her more information. A latticed, deformed rock, or perhaps a meteorite. Appears useless, but possesses some odd gravitational force that prevents its riddance. A dubious soul once said: Step lightly round to the right of the great cathedral, and seek an ancient, shrouded church... The gift of the godhead will grant you strength…

Dubious huh? Causin wasn’t sure she would trust this man but she couldn’t get rid of the stone. The hunter merely went on her way.

“What is this a windmill? Or maybe lighthouse…” Causin waved her torch a bit as she walked through the building. She paused seeing a man walking strangely dragging an axe behind him. She followed him carefully all the way down then used a powerful backstab and a visceral to bring him down. Her hunter senses had screamed when she saw him, her senses hadn’t gotten her trouble yet, nothing about that man had been good.

Upon getting to the top of the place she found another man only he looked more hum- Around him were dead bodies he appeared to be eating. She cleared her throat making him twitch and turn to face her acting like he hadn’t just been eating people. “Blimey, don't scare me like that! On a night like this...I took you for a monster. Oh, thank the stars, you're fairly normal...Was it you put down that awful beast?” She nodded slowly. “Oh, that thing had me trembling, frozen in me bots. And then you came along. Well, if you're a hunter...then...would you know of any safe havens?”

She was not sending him to the chapel, Casin wasn’t a fool and she certainly wasn’t blind. “Iosefka's Clinic is safe, its back in Central Yharnam.” He nodded. “Well, I'll be! Thank you! It's about time I made a move. I can't very well stay out on me own...Oh, you've given me hope...Terribly kind of you. Take this. It's all I can offer as thanks.” He gave her Pungent Blood Cocktails. As calmly as she could Causin walked back into the building, once out of sight she ran and ended up falling, it wasn’t a bad thing though as she found a cannon.

Leaving the building she discovered why her senses didn’t like the axe wielding man, the dream called him Vermin Host. There were snakes coming from his head, and good word they could move and poison her! No wonder her hunter senses screamed!

“Oh thank goodness, a shortcut.” Causin muttered seeing the lamp from earlier just outside the gate door. However there was a man with some kind of tin hat nearby. “Hello.” She greeting softly, he turned his head to her. “Ahh, a new face, are you?” Was it just her or did he have an accent? “And an accomplished hunter...it would appear.” He chuckled and nodded his head to her. “I am Valter, master of the League. Members of the League cleanse the streets of all the filth that's spread about during the hunt. Like any half-decent hunter ought to, you know? Haven't you seen enough of these wretched beasts. freakish slugs, and mad doctors?” Okay...he was...very heavy with this.

“Sentence these fiends to death. With the help of your League confederates. What do you say? Why not join the League?” He may be heavy but...if she was just going to be hunting anyway why not get some help? She accepted. “Yes. As a hunter well should. Commit this to heart. Our own caryll rune, symbol of the League.” He gave her the Impurity rune. “The night brims with defiled scum and is premated by their own rotten stench. Just think. Now you're set to hunt and kill to your heart's content. Hunt in co-operation with your fellows, your League confederates.” He let out a laugh. Causin bid him farewell and opened the door gate. Valter...seemed to really hate the beasts and was very heavy with his words but he didn’t...seem like a bad man.

Before moving on she went through the dream and then to the clinic to see if the man had showed up there. It seemed he had but this woman who took Iosefka’s place...was still off. Causin wondered if that man was really okay but decided it best to not ask and went back to the woods.

****

Strange headstones, huge strange headstones, odd statues of two kinds, a whole lot of snakes tied into balls big and small all poisonous. The snake men, some large pigs those things with no legs and...weird little beasts that were blue. The dream called the small blue beasts Small Celestial Emissary, the snakes, Snake Ball and Greater Viper Pit. 

Causin looked over her notes and her questions. She opened another notebook and jotted down a theory, what if this place, the snakes here were used to poison the people of Old Yharnam? It was just an idea for now but it might be correct.

The hunter had found a lot of things here as she did in every area, the runes were very nice to find, however the Graveguard garb had been interesting. The dream told he the whoever wore it had been loyal to Willem but insane due to discovering the Eldritch Truth...she didn’t know what that was but it might be something for her to avoid if they went mad. The other person had been the door guard who was long dead but...where was the one who had wore the Graveguard garb? She had only found the clothes. She didn’t know what to make of that.

As for everything else? She had no idea. This forest was strange and she had no clue why it was forbidden, but there must be some reason. Causin glanced over to the wide open area, she just knew she would be fighting something there. She gathered her note books and put them away then ran into the area.

***

The silver haired hunter rang her old hunter bell near the red light and summoned some help. For the first time in quite a while she had gone down. The Shadow of Yharnam wasn’t easy, there were three of them for one thing and they all attacked. She needed a little help parting up the three.

Her summon proved very helpful, while she attacked the shadow that threw fire her summon was at the other two. Causin wasn’t expecting snakes to burst out of the things hoods, nor for them to get a little stronger and faster. What was most disturbing about them however was their arms, they snapped out at an impossible distance to stab her with a sword, knock her over or send her flying. The worst was when there was only one left, he knelt down and summoned something, the whisper alone was creepy but the giant snakes that appeared and smacked or bit at her and the summon she had was very bad.

Causin and her summon kept close to the last shadow and just wailed on him to keep him from summoning the snakes again, she was low on blood vials and didn’t think her summon could heal anymore either. Thankfully the last shadow fell leaving Causin with a great number of echos and a new rune. She turned on the lamp and frowned. Forbidden Grave. Looking around at all the headstones she couldn’t help but wonder what had died to need something that big or why they were all over the place. Or perhaps the better questions were, what was this place? What happened here? Those were better and written down.

“Ahhh!” The hunter rolled away as some bug looking person tried to grab her, she ran up a hill and turned sharply just as it caught up with her. She rolled to the side and slammed her great sword onto it a few times before it fell. “Hahhhh...what in the nine fires is this?!” The dream gave her information, Garden of Eyes. Was that what this thing was called? She could understand given all the eyes the things had- Byrgenwerth.

Wait, this was the place everything started in! Although...it seemed small. That building wasn’t very big, if there was a lot of scholars here once how did they all study in there? Or perhaps...this was a more private place for the teachers and the main building was hidden someplace else in the woods. Causin wasn’t certain, but she’d get no answers just standing here. She turned the lamp on then went back to the dream to make herself strong and took a stop back at the chapel to check on everyone.

The old woman appeared to be losing her mind, she thought Causin was her child. Unable to say she was wrong she merely gave a nice greeting and did say she had her share of woes, the old woman gave her some sedatives. The dream had information on them of course. Liquid medicine concocted at Byrgenwerth. Calms the nerves. Those who delve into the arcane fall all-too-easily to madness, and thick human blood serves to calm the frayed nerves of these inquisitive minds. Naturally, this often leads to a reliance on blood ministration.

Human...blood? Oh, dear heavens, Causin hoped she never needed the things.

Back in Byrgenwerth it wasn’t hard to get around, those garden of eyes weren’t tough unless they were coming at her in numbers. She wasn’t happy to find a brain sucker here but liked the new rune she picked up. The other problem with the place was the strange Fluorescent Flower. She killed it, it seemed to...be sucked into itself by some odd cosmic portal of some type. The other problem was the hunter inside the building...she wasn’t easy to fight, her arcane tools hurt a lot and one even killed Causin. Her next go went better as she used the beast roar to knock the other hunter down and attack. It was a very low way to fight but this woman hurt, was strong and very quick.

Inside she found two arcane tools, one was just like the thing that hunter had and the other was sued on her weapon. She found a key to the door from down stairs too but...a note had her worried. “When the red moon hangs low, the line between man and beast is blurred. And when the Great Ones descend, a womb will be bless with child.” From what Arianna told her she wasn’t sure how well some...thing and a human could have a child together hybrids didn’t normally do well.

The hunter also found some strange creatures in cages that looked very old or at least molding, there was also eyes in containers everywhere along with papers and book and who knew what else. She did find a student uniform making her wonder again how so many could study in a small place.

Opening the door she found...Willem in a rocking chair holding a staff. She tried to talk with him but he only made noise and pointed to the lake. However his covered eyes gave her pause along with...the strange growth he had behind his neck.

On a whim she moved back and rang her bell, when she got someone she asked them to wait and questioned. “Do you know anything about this place?” The man paused. “I have theories, but anyone other hunter who explores enough will tell you the same. There are no clear answer in Yharnam.” Causin took out her notebooks. “I’ll take what I can get, I am lost here, my name is Causin.” He sat down with her on one of the couches. “Call me Redgrave.”


End file.
